Tsubasa
by Ailu Chan
Summary: “If I didn’t know you, I’d think you’re flirting with me.” “You don’t know me,” he said. “...exactly.” In a world where she is innocent, kind and lonely, and he is ruthless, merciless and a shinobi, they met. Sasusaku.
1. Part One

**A**uthor's **N**ote: I don't even know where this came from. But here it is, written entirely in English ― this one isn't translated, and I expect that makes a difference. Texts are different and you notice if they're written on the language you're reading it or if they've been translated. It's an AU ― sort of. Still, I did my best to keep the characters, well, in character. You know what I mean. And, in case you are still wondering, "Tsubasa" means "Wings".

This was meant to be a one-shot. It didn't work as a one-shot. So this is the first part. I'm working pretty fast on this idea, since I've been dreaming about it for weeks and I need to get it out of my head. I don't think it will be very long ― three or four chapters maximum.

Reviews, as always, are really appreciated.

* * *

"I don't need you anymore,"

* * *

**Tsubasa  
**_by Ailu-Chan

* * *

_

"I would do anything, I swear!"

* * *

**.Part One.**

That day, when they first met, she had been allured by him.

They were fifteen ― well, at least she was fifteen, and he didn't look much older. She had instantly deduced he was a shinobi, those sharp and keen eyes, those clothes and those boots, and those calloused hands said so. She hadn't actually met any shinobi before, there weren't any in that area, though she did know shinobi were responsible of many deaths among the villagers, of an enormous fire that killed half, if not more, the population of her little village, including her parents and uncles.

She was around eight, perhaps nine years old by then, and she had promised that one day, she would become a shinobi (kunoichi, that's what female ninja were called, as someone told her later) so that she had the ability, the _power_ to protect her precious people, to prevent these kind of disasters from happening ever again. Her dream had faded quickly, of course, after she found out her parents were dead and gone and she was on her own, with no one to protect anymore ― with no one to protect her. No precious people anymore. It hurt a little, sometimes, but she managed. She always managed.

They were quietly staring at each other, and she realized he was beautiful. She was astonished ― shinobi were not supposed to be beautiful; they were murderers, they should look like such, with evil smirks and blood stains.

The boy was still staring, and she was starting to feel a little self-conscious ― her forehead was too wide, she was much shorter than him and her hair was _pink_. She truly believed she should be afraid and start to run, but she did not, she held his gaze and opened her mouth to say something but suddenly (oh so suddenly), someone was behind her, laying a hand on her waist and the other one on her mouth, shutting it. She felt like screaming, but decided against it, so she just widened her eyes, surprised; truly scared of what they would do to her.

She felt the sharp breath against her throat, as he said, "Oi, Sasuke, what should we do with her?"

Then, two more materialized in front of her, next to the man who was called Sasuke ― a red haired girl with black glasses and a well-built man, much taller than the other two. She had heard stories about shinobi being fast, but she would have never imagined she wouldn't be able to even _see_ them moving.

And even though she was afraid, she could feel that distant hope, when a long time ago she had dreamt of weapons and fires and guarding her village. She had never known shinobi, and if she had, she did not remember. Now she felt like that forgotten dream was becoming true, but it was better not to hope, never hope. So she frowned and narrowed her eyes, wary of their movements, though she knew it was useless, they were too fast for her eyes.

The boy, Sasuke, she recalled once again; ignored the question, looking at her in the eyes ― through her eyes. "Your name," he said. It wasn't even a question. The boy behind her swiftly took his hand off her mouth and grabbed her wrists.

"Fuck you," she answered.

And Sasuke smirked.

"Let go of her, Suigetsu," he ordered. "Where do you live?"

"I don't quite get why I should answer that," she replied after a few seconds. She cursed inwardly ― why was this happening to her? It wasn't fair. She had never left the village, and the first time she does, _this_. She cursed at her recklessness; she should have stayed home and forgot about travelling. Now she was going to die and it was all her fault.

The red haired girl chuckled, "Aw, the little bitch wants to die?" She frowned, so did Sasuke. "Be quiet, Karin," he said, severely, and the girl named Karin glared at her but kept silent.

"Because," Suigetsu said, answering Sakura, "we might kill'ya within seconds."

It's not like she cared anymore, so she said nothing.

"I have business to do in a nearby village," Sasuke elaborated. "Are you from that village?"

"Who the hell do you think you are?" she blurted out. The nerve of this guy, asking all this stuff…

"You are," he stated, as it were a matter of fact.

"I'm not," she replied instantly, defensively.

"You are," he said again, "I need a place to stay." She realized he didn't speak too much. Just the necessary words left his mouth, efficiently enough to make himself understood.

"Like. Hell." After thinking over his words, she realized what he was trying to say. "No way," and she struggled with Suigetsu. "Let me go!"

"Do you have parents?" He asked as he blinked, so slowly that for a moment she thought he was asleep.

"None of your business," But she had flinched, and she was sure he had seen it. She was so screwed. She spoke up quickly so as to cover her mistake, "if you want a place to stay, why don't you go get an inn or something? I have no intention of going back there."

His face remained stoic and void of emotion. "There are no inns in that village."

She widened her eyes and parted her lips, speechless. "What would you have to do in such a small village? And why would I agree to have all of you in my house?"

…_not your house anymore._

"None of your business, as regards the first question," he answered, using her own previous words. She frowned. He wasn't being diplomatic or helpful. "I offer you protection from whatever it is you're running away from, and it would be just me."

The other three glanced at him curiously, but said nothing. She widened her eyes slightly, considering the offer, and wondering if she was being _that_ obvious. She felt persuaded, but after a few seconds she realized that hardly anyone could help her, let alone a stranger ― a shinobi ― like him. She had to leave, run away from that place and never, ever come back before she went insane. She felt the urge to yell at him, who the hell did he think he was, and why did he think someone like him could help her?

Then, she also realized she hadn't thought about what she'd do with herself, and once again, that dream of protecting people rang in her ears like a soft whisper. She swallowed.

"So?" She was doubting, she hated doubting, and he was still expecting an answer. How she wanted him to go away, to leave her alone; because she didn't want to return to that place, but no one ever promised her such a thing, and even if they had, she wouldn't have believed them ― there was no way out ― but those eyes made her believe. Believe so hard it hurt.

So in spite of herself, she said, "…deal."

And Sasuke smirked once again, nodding to Suigetsu, "Let her go."

"But, Sasuke," Karin started, "what are we supposed to do? What are you planning?"

"You must keep looking for Uchiha Itachi," he answered, and turned again towards Suigetsu, "if you betray me, consider yourselves dead."

"Hey! Don't look at me like that!"

"Brief me every three weeks, either personally or any way you want," he ordered. "Go."

And just like that, the three of them disappeared. She felt a little safer now that Suigetsu wasn't behind her, and she couldn't help but to step back a little.

"Let's go," he said coldly, and started walking back the path she had been walking for days. She bit her lip and rushed to follow him, walking side by side.

She looked up at him, he was looking ahead. She looked down, toying with the straps of her backpack, feeling bad because she had walked so much for nothing. She was starving, she had planned to get an easy job in the next town, eat something, and then continue travelling to nowhere; but now all of that was completely overruled. She wondered if Sasuke had money, because she did not. But she was curious of a lot of things as well.

"Now that they're gone," she said, looking up to the horizon, "will you tell me what your issues could be in a small town like that?"

"Wrong," he said, smirking, "but nice try. They're not completely gone."

She widened her eyes for a second, "…oh," and looked down once again. "Why me? What if I wasn't there at the right time?"

"You were," he answered plainly.

"I know," she said rolling her eyes, and he raised a brow, "but what if I wasn't?"

"I would have found another place or blackmailed someone else,"

"You didn't blackmail me," she replied.

"Because it wasn't necessary." In some way, it sounded like he could do horrible things to her.

And just like that, silence invaded them both. She was so tired, and the sight didn't help – night was falling and constantly reminding her that it wouldn't be long before it was too dark to walk like they were. Then again, Sasuke was a ninja, and he was probably used to darkness unlike her – and he obviously knew how to handle thieves and that kind of stuff. For some reason, however, she didn't feel much safer. After half an hour, she felt courageous enough to speak up.

"…it's getting dark," she said quietly, "Aren't you hungry or something?" He just shook his head slightly. "Well it's dangerous to walk this late," she offered. "Would you mind staying in some place for tonight? I'm pretty sure there was an inn nearby… I stayed there last night, and it wasn't bad." A few seconds, and he said nothing. "…so?"

"You talk too much," he said, plainly. She moved her lips, like she said 'fuck you'. He smirked. She pouted and crossed her arms on her chest. "Get on my back."

"…_excuse me?_"

She had met a lot of pervs who asked her to do a lot of things – and she had given them a beautiful punch in their faces – but none of them had ever asked her _that_.

"I don't intend to stop tonight," he said, "and you're slow." A short pause. "So get on my back."

Well, he certainly had a good point. She had seen him – actually, she hadn't but you get it – moving. So she sighed, defeated, and got on his back, feeling a bit awkward and biting her lip. She noticed he had hesitated a bit before holding her legs, and smiled knowingly, leaning her head against his shoulder.

"You don't offer this kind of things to everyone, do you?"

"...of course not."

A weird silence. And.

"...Sasuke?"

"Hn,"

"If I didn't know you, I'd think you're flirting with me."

"You don't know me," he said.

"...exactly."

* * *

Sasuke had trouble believing this girl had really fallen asleep on his back. He was a _ninja_, for crying out loud, and she was just a young villager who didn't know anything. Either she was as naïve as a four-year-old child, or she just wasn't afraid of dying ― wasn't afraid of _him_. He couldn't help but to wonder what could have happened to her that made her scared of nothing, but he immediately reprimanded himself because it obviously had nothing to do with him, and therefore he shouldn't care. He did not care.

Yet, her being asleep actually made him feel a little more comfortable as he ran as fast as he could towards her village. It was dark, so dark he could barely see without his Sharingan; so he activated his kekkei-genkai now and then in order to confirm they were on the right path, in the right direction. Every time he'd encounter another traveler, shinobi or not, he would go further into the forest and out of the dirt path; as a precaution. He didn't want to be seen with that girl at any circumstances.

The sun had risen a few hours ago, he noticed, so he must have been travelling for ten or twelve hours non-stop by then. He calculated it should be seven in the morning, but he didn't need to measure his hunger – he was starving, yet reluctant to stop until they got to the girl's house.

He felt her chakra – because yes, she had some chakra, despite being a mere civilian – flicker; and he knew she was about to wake up. During the trip, he had also felt her breathing agitate and then calm down, and a while later it would agitate again; hinting she was suffering from some sort of nightmares.

She sighed heavily, relieved. Once again, it was just a bad dream, and luckily this time she wasn't screaming or something. What she first realized was that she had fallen asleep – _on Sasuke's back_. She gaped and tried to hide her face on his shirt. What had she been thinking? He could have raped her or assault her or stolen her backpack. She was such a moron.

"What's wrong?" he couldn't help asking, and slapped himself inwardly as the words left his lips – asking those kind of things just wasn't like him, but he could feel she was upset and he didn't want her to be upset, he wanted her to be cooperative above all.

"Nothing, just... nothing," she said, her voice trailing off as she spoke with her face still hidden. He waited. "I just can't believe I fell asleep on your back! 'Cause you're a complete stranger, you know, and girls like me aren't supposed to sleep on a stranger's back, am I right?!"

"Let alone shinobi," Sasuke added quietly.

"Let alone shinobi, yeah!" she seconded. "Crap, just ― _crap_. I think I'll die young after all."

This was such an annoying, stupid girl.

"You think I'm stupid and annoying, don't you?" she said suddenly, quietly. She sounded almost ―_almost― _sad, and he wondered if she was telepathic, or just weird. He was positive someone like her couldn't possibly be telepathic –he was sure he would have noticed; plus, he didn't believe in those things, despite he could pull electricity out of his _hand_― so he just assumed the obvious: she was weird, annoying and stupid. "Well you can go to hell, just ―_wait,_ we're almost there!" she exclaimed, then sighed, then closed her eyes and then she sighed again. "We got here so fast, you must be so tired, Sasuke. It took me a week to get to where we met."

"I'm not tired," he denied. Just hungry. So fucking hungry.

"Very well, then you must be hungry."

...that was so weird.

"At least I am, okay? I don't even remember if I left any food at all. I wasn't thinking on coming back, you know, so I threw everything, or sold it. So you better don't complain."

"You talk too much," he said evenly.

"I know," she said immediately, "I know. I'm sorry." Why did she take that so seriously? She wasn't even half as loud as his team Hebi was. "Anyways, would you like to go to the market with me?" she offered, smiling again, "once we get there, that is,"

"No."

"...okay."

Thirty minutes later, it being ten to eight in the morning, they were just a few kilometers away from the entrance, and Sakura started to feel anxious. The villagers didn't need to know Sasuke was a shinobi, did they? Moreover, walking in on a stranger's back just didn't seem right. "Could you slow down a bit?" she asked, her voice trembling a little.

"What for?" he questioned. He saw no reason – the quicker they reached her place, the better.

"I don't know, just... Put me down, will you? We'll walk from here." He ignored her. They were close, just a few minutes away, and he could stand running a bit more. "Please, Sasuke!"

She sounded so distressed that he had to stop in the middle of the dirt road, and then she immediately got down. He stretched his back –he hadn't even noticed it was so sore- and glanced at her. She looked troubled, biting her lip, not meeting his eyes. Something was off, that much was obvious; and he wondered, bewildered, what her problem was with that village. They started to walk, and her hands were trembling, her steps were clumsy. Now, instead of twenty minutes, they had two hours left.

He didn't say anything, of course. There wasn't anything to say. He could tell her they would be there faster if she let him carry her, he could tell her he was tired and wished to arrive as soon as possible; but he knew hardly anything he said would help it. She seemed so despaired, and somehow, he managed to believe she really didn't want to go back.

They started to walk silently. She was embarrassed, she should be able to control her body and keep it from shaking like a crybaby by now. She took a deep breath, trying to calm down, but it didn't work, so she took another one. It wasn't that bad, was it? Within a few minutes, she was a little more relaxed. Okay _fine_, she wasn't relaxed, but at least her hands were lying still by her sides.

"Will you tell me why you want to go to that town, now?" she asked quietly, her eyes on his.

He hesitated for a few seconds, and decided that she would find out sooner or later, as they were to live together. He took a moment to search for any chakra signatures there might be close, and when he find none, "I need time," he said, "to plan a strategy. There is someone I must kill."

"Uchiha Itachi?" she said, hesitantly, remembering the orders he had given to his team. Sasuke nodded. "I don't understand."

"Why I want to kill him?" he guessed. He was a little uncomfortable ― almost everybody knew about the Uchiha massacre, so he didn't ever need to explain his desire for vengeance. Everyone understood ― and at the same time, they understood nothing at all.

"No, not that," she replied, sighing. Then he understood. She knew nothing. She didn't even know he was his brother, and that was probably why she wasn't asking about that. "I mean, I'm sure you must have your reasons and from your face I can tell this is some really serious shit, but ―" she paused, and Sasuke raised an eyebrow, "why would you choose that specific town? I'm telling you, there's nothing interesting in there."

"It's well-located," he answered, "near the border with the Fire Country and Amegakure at the same time. It's small; it doesn't appear in common maps. It's a good place to hide while I train and work on that strategy.

"I see," she said. It made sense, now that she thought about it. That was probably the reason he separated from his team, too. He wanted to be left alone and to take advantage of the quietness of the town. However, wait a minute, something wasn't right. "You wanna go to Amegakure?" she wondered why she wasn't surprised.

"Eventually, perhaps,"

"Okay, you're insane," she blurted out, "people there are crazy, you know that? It's very dangerous,"

"I know," he answered, blankly.

"Akatsuki's main base is in there," she tried.

"I _know_," he repeated, rolling his eyes.

"I met one of them once, you know," she said after a few minutes. Sasuke stared at her, bewildered. "Of course, I didn't know they were from Akatsuki, by then. I found out months later... And almost had a heart attack when I did."

"How did you survive?"

"I don't know; but in actuality, they were quite polite," she went on, "my parents had just died and I was hungry, but none of my neighbors would buy me something to eat or teach me how to cook, so I was crying on a bench near the entrance, a few meters from here, actually;" she said, pointing ahead of them with her index finger. She was rather proud she was really managing to talk about that with a sober voice. "And suddenly, a big guy appeared with his big sword, and made fun of me. He said he would kill me, but I had done nothing to him!" she exclaimed, indignant. "And you won't' believe this! His skin," she looked at him in the eyes, "was blue."

"And what did you do?" he asked, truly interested.

"I spit in his face, of course,"

He chuckled. He could imagine Kisame's face, that motherfucker.

"Hey, don't you laugh! I was scared!"

He pretended not to, but he was astonished. This girl had survived an encounter with Hoshigaki Kisame? Impossible. He cleared his throat, "you said they were polite,"

"Okay, that one wasn't," he stopped. She went on, talking out loud, "but the other one, he was a lot nicer!" Akatsuki members moved in couples, and Kisame's partner was ― "he gave me an onigiri he had somewhere inside his cloak, and reprimanded the blue guy for threatening me."

Uchiha Itachi.

"Then, when the other one wasn't looking, he smiled and poked me in my forehead."

This was a nightmare, right? He couldn't possibly be everywhere.

...but he was, he was always there to torture him. How he hated him, oh gods, how he hated him.

"I can't remember his face, but you know what? I do remember he had bright, red eyes. They were beautiful," she sighed. He shivered, but tried to hide it.

"You don't what you're talking about," he hissed.

"Yeah, I probably don't," she shrugged, ignoring the severe tone of his voice. "The thing is, luckily, I haven't encountered any Akatsuki members since then." She glanced at him, and decided to drop the topic as he looked a little upset with it.

She realized the short conversation had distracted her from her anxiety, and that she was feeling better. Indeed, it felt good to have someone to talk to, instead of just talking out loud to herself in order to not feel so lonely. She bit her lip and wrapped her hands around the straps of her backpack. She was thankful; perhaps he could really protect her after all.

When the first small houses started to appear at each side of the road, she wished the journey had never ended. She could feel she was walking rigidly and unnaturally, but she was sure she wouldn't be able to relax until she reached her home and rested on her own bed.

Sasuke could hear the villagers' gossip, and though he couldn't care less about them, he could guess that was why she was walking faster and faster, like she was running away from them. Then he realized ― she had been running away from them all along, since the very beginning.

"We're lucky I kept the key," she whispered, "I thought of burying it or throwing it to the river, but that would have been way too drastic," she smiled, but it quickly faded. "We should hurry up, the gossip has already started."

The house was located downtown, but only because the village was too small to have suburbs, Sasuke noted. It wasn't in the main street, but two blocks to the right, and when she noticed they were just one block away, she started to search for her keys into her backpack while walking. "Oh, here they are," she grinned, showing him the single gold key.

As soon as they were inside, she ran to the kitchen. Sasuke silently followed, though she didn't say a word. He found her checking the cupboards. The room was small, there were a square wooden table and four wooden chairs, the floor was white and clean. Everything was pretty clean, he noticed, and he liked that. The stove and refrigerator were also flawlessly clean, and there was a window above the sink, from where all the sunlight came from ― once she opened the shutters, of course, which she did after searching the cupboards and the refrigerator. She sighed and sat down on the wooden table, swinging her legs and staring out the window. He looked out too, and noticed there also was a small garden with one big tree ― an orange tree, he guessed.

He turned to her and found she was staring at him now. She smiled dumbly. "I really like that tree, you know," she told him. "I've watched it grow since it was a little, little lovely tree." He stared at her like she was insane. She blinked. "Anyways, as I thought, I actually left behind some non-perishable food ― in other words, lots of rice; and there is some canned tuna in the refrigerator that is still edible. However, I'm out of fruit and vegetables, so I should go to the market today, if possible."

"No tomatoes?"

"Huh? Um, no, no tomatoes."

He nodded slowly, and took a step towards the living-room ― that couch seemed pretty comfortable and he needed a nap. Then, he stopped and turned to her once again.

"Why would you leave food behind? You were not coming back," he said, thoughtfully.

"In case some homeless guy wanted to live in here," she answered.

He raised a brow, stared at her silently and walked out of the kitchen.

She decided not to tell him she had a little orchard outside, since the local market wasn't very nice ― apart from being expensive. She had tomatoes, but they weren't fully grown yet. Still, she grabbed the little money she had and the key. They also needed milk and flour and coffee ― she would bet anything Sasuke loved coffee.

The main door was in the living-room, a few steps away from the kitchen. He was sitting on the couch, his eyes closed, but she thought she should let him know she was going.

"I'll be back in a bit," she said in a low voice. He nodded, surprisingly ― she thought he was asleep. "Would you like anything in particular?"

"Tomatoes," he answered.

"Right… Um, listen," she started, and he opened his eyes and looked at her. "This town isn't big, you know; so the market isn't big as well. The keepers are assholes, for that matter; and they don't have vegetables or fruits," she said, and he sighed. He should have known. "But ― I can tell you this: wait for a week or so, and I will have nice juicy tomatoes for you, okay?"

"…alright." It was better than nothing.

"Excellent. Feel free to explore the house while I'm gone ― I'll set you a room when I'm back."

When she shut the door, he took a look at the room. There were no photographs, no flowers, hardly any decorations. He stood up, fighting the urge to lie down and sleep, looking up at the stairs there were against one of the walls. They were wooden and looked nice when taking into account the matt white of the walls.

He decided not to go upstairs, not yet. He made his way to a little corridor ― he had already walked through it, when he followed her to the kitchen, so he already knew where the double doors led to. There were two more doors ― he opened the first one and found a medium-sized toilet, and he pulled open the little cupboard there was above the sink. He was taken aback by the amount of drugs there was in there.

* * *

"Oh, good morning, Sakura-chan," the old man greeted her, smiling. "This is odd. I thought you left almost a week ago,"

"Good morning," she said cheerfully. "Well, that's right, I left," the man looked at her expectantly with a plastic bag in his hands, "oh, gimme three milk bottles and two dozens of eggs, please,"

The man turned around and opened the big refrigerator in order to get the milk she had asked for. "So why did you come back? Some people told me you walked in with a handsome young man," he suggested.

She just rolled her eyes, "It's a long story, old man ― I made a bargain with him."

He put the milk on the buffet, "A bargain? Is he your boyfriend or something?"

"_No_," she replied, indignantly. The old man was so nosy. She didn't care, though ― she could take advantage of that and dispel any rumors that might appear. "And yeah, a bargain," she added, "he needed a place to stay."

"_Here?_" he asked, truly curious, while pulling out four sets of eggs from below the buffet, six eggs each. "What business could he have in a town like this?"

"I wish he told me," she lied. She was such a good liar.

"I see," he said. "Anything else?"

"Uhm, let me see…" she hesitated. "There's almost nothing home, so I could use some corn flakes. Sugar and toothpaste too, please,"

"Alright… oh, I'm afraid I've run out of sugar," he said apologetically.

"Don't worry ― put some chocolate instead, then,"

The man chuckled, "Ah, Sakura-chan, you've always loved chocolate, haven't you?"

She smiled. "How much is it?"

"Err, let's see… That would be twenty-two,"

She reached for her money and started to count, there were many coins. She hated having to count her money.

"I bet he offered you something really valuable if not money," he said, watching her count, "for your coming back. I know you don't like it here," he added, knowingly.

"…_I offer you protection from whatever it is you're running away from…"_

She swallowed. "You bet he did," she said, smiling a fake smile. She didn't want to dwell on how she hated that old town.

While walking back to her house, she couldn't stop thinking on what the old man had said. Something really valuable, yes, she was sure that was very valuable. However, her heart sunk as she realized it was impossible as well. She was such a fool ― she had let a stranger into her house, and she had believed in his hopeless words.

Still, she refused to run away. He was a shinobi ― everything she once aimed to be. He could have killed her, but he didn't. He could have let the other guy, Suigetsu, kill her; and yet there she was, walking to her house, alive. He had asked her for a place to live. He would be living with her. He had trusted her. She should trust him as well.

And though she really wanted to believe him, she was still wary of that promise.

* * *

"Are you an addict?"

She had found him on the toilet, staring like a moron at the cupboard.

"_What?_" she exclaimed, indignantly. "Hell no, you idiot."

"Then, what's this for?"

"I'm a _nurse_," she explained. "I work in the local hospital and do healing at some patients' houses, and sometimes I need those meds,"

"A nurse," he repeated, thoughtfully.

"Yeah," she sighed. "Do you like chocolate?" she asked as she closed the cupboard and headed to the kitchen, "'cause I bought some."

"I don't like sweets," he replied as he followed her.

She turned around and looked at him like he was crazy. "Sweets. You don't like sweets?"

"That's what I said."

"You, my friend, are insane."

"I'm not your friend."

_No one is._

"I know, but you got the idea," she answered, and started to unpack the eggs.

* * *

A/N: I hope you liked it! I'm a bit self-conscious as regards characterization, specially on Sasuke's part, but well. Thanks a lot for reading! And, reviews are helpful - they keep me going.


	2. Part Two

**A**uthor's **N**ote: Thank you guys! I loved your support on the first part. All the people that has subscribed to this fanfiction… Wow. Thank you! Enjoy the second part :)

* * *

"I haven't told you my name," she had said. "Aren't you curious?"

* * *

**Tsubasa**_  
by Ailu-Chan_

* * *

"Perhaps," he had answered, "but it's not like you would tell me, right?"

* * *

**.Part Two.**

"Damn," she cursed, clenching her teeth, "I forgot the coffee." She stared at his stoic face. "You like coffee, right?"

"Kind of," he answered.

"What do you mean, _kind of_? You don't like chocolate, you _kinda_ like coffee; what the hell do you drink?"

"Water."

She stared at him incredulously, gaping. "You're kidding me, right?" He stared back, his eyes cold. She blinked. "I mean, I drink water too, but I also like coffee and chocolate and tea and soda," she enumerated. "Water is boring." She sat down on the table and looked up at the ceiling. "Wait, scratch that ― I don't really like tea,"

"I like tea," he stated, blankly.

"You said you only drank water," she replied, now looking at him.

"Tea _is_ water, technically,"

"You're impossible," she whined, rolling her eyes, and settled the milk bottles into the refrigerator. "Would you like something to eat? I assume you've been running all night long,"

He knew it wasn't very much what she could offer, and yet she was being so generous. "Rice would be fine."

"Good," she smiled, pulling out a pan from below the sink, "I can do that."

He sat down on one of the chairs and watched her fill it with water. "By the way, how do you do it?" She glanced at him and when he didn't answer, she assumed he was waiting for clarification. "Running all night, that is,"

"It's just training," he said quietly. "You're not trained, that's all."

"I see," she sighed as she put the pan into the fire. She turned to him. "…how long have you been a shinobi?" she asked.

"That's none of your business," he said coldly.

She took a step closer, and he narrowed his dark eyes. She just wanted to know what her chances were. "I know, but _please_, tell me," He could see the despair, the desperation in those green eyes. He looked away.

"Why do you ask all these things?" he muttered. It was more than what he was willing to say.

She closed her eyes and sighed. "Nevermind. Sorry,"

All he wanted to know was why she was always apologizing. It was starting to irk him.

"Would you like something else, apart from your rice?" He opened his mouth, and was about to say 'tomatoes' almost automatically― "Don't say tomatoes, please. I don't have any and you know it," He shut his mouth, and shook his head. "Alright then."

She went upstairs, but he stayed right where he was, sitting, staring at the fire. He heard her walking around the first floor, and then he heard her come downstairs once again. "Sasuke?" he turned his head to her. "What are you doing? Come with me, I need your help," she said.

He imagined she was going to ask him to help her with something related to his room, and he was right. He followed her upstairs slowly, and glanced at the four doors there were in that corridor. There were no windows, so the light only reached the place when she opened one of the doors ― that room did have one. There were two beds, but he didn't know why. He knew she had no parents, but she had said nothing about siblings or cousins that lived with her. Now that he thought about it, that house was way too big for one single person.

"This will be your room," she said, now looking at him, smiling. "You can choose whichever bed you want."

"That one," he said, nodding at the bed that wasn't near the window.

"Excellent," she grinned.

She pulled out blankets from a closet there was between the two beds, and threw them on the other bed. Then she walked and stood at one side of the bed. "Help me," He raised a brow. "I need to turn the mattress upside down," she explained.

He sighed and moved to the other side, and turned it in no time. She stared at him wide-eyed. "Damn, you're strong," she said. She didn't expect him to reply, so she grabbed the blankets and started to make the bed. When she was finished, she sighed, satisfied. "The rice must be ready," she suddenly remembered, and ran down the stairs.

He stayed there a little longer, staring at his bed. He sighed, and put his katana under the pillow.

When Sasuke reached the kitchen, there was only one dish with rice in it, a fork and a big glass of water on the table. She smiled at him and returned to her task ― washing up the pan. He noticed she had mixed the rice with canned tuna, and though simple, it looked good, so he started to eat.

"How is it?" she asked once she was done with that.

She sat down next to him, and took a sip from his glass. He stared. "It's fine," and it was.

"I'm glad," she grinned. "I have apples," she said later, thoughtfully, wondering if he liked fruit. Fruit was sweet. "Would you like some apples?"

He hesitated, and then nodded. "Excellent!" she chirped, and stood up, ready to go outside and pick some.

"Aren't you going to eat anything?" he asked before she was able to leave.

"Um, I'm not hungry, sorry,"

"That's a lie," he stated.

She looked at him, her face void of emotion. No one could ever tell whether she was lying or not, and this guy had just noticed one of the simplest lies ever. "I'm not feeling well," she admitted, and he could see it was true. "It must be the weather or something," she shrugged. "Still, I was thinking on eating an apple, that's why I asked if you wanted some,"

"It's sunny outside," he replied.

She glared fiercely, what did he want her to say? "Then it must be this place altogether." She hissed. He raised a brow. "I'll eat an apple, okay? Just drop it,"

"I wasn't going to force you,"

"Then you should shut the fuck up, Sasuke."

He realized she was right, and resumed his eating, watching her going outside in a huff. He realized that was the first time anyone told him to shut the fuck up, as well. Sasuke glared at his rice.

Apparently, she wasn't as enraged as she seemed to be, because she returned with four apples in her hands, her face blank but not displeased. By the time he finished his rice, she was already peeling an apple for him.

"I don't mind the peel," he said, quietly. He had never had the time to peel it.

"I do," she answered, "and I like peeling fruit."

Who on earth liked peeling fruit?

She chuckled at Sasuke's 'you-are-a-freak' face. "It's relaxing," she explained, sliding the sharp knife between the thin peel and the apple itself.

And thus he watched her peel, his head leaning on his hand. She was smiling now, he noticed, so he assumed she wasn't angry anymore. She finished peeling the first one, so she started to cut it smoothly into four pieces, placing it onto a small little dish. He took one and ate it.

"You said there were no fruit or vegetables," he uttered once he swallowed, politely waiting before taking another one.

She grinned knowingly. "There's an apple tree outside," she said, and cut another apple. He swallowed once again, and took another piece, but tried to eat it more slowly.

When she finished peeling all the four fruits, she noticed he was waiting for her, and that he didn't take another one until she had eaten three pieces. He looked so cold, but he was a gentleman; she realized. She smiled.

"How old are you?" she asked, once she had swallowed.

He considered shrugging off the question, but that kind of information couldn't possibly do any harm, so he just sighed. "Seventeen,"

She nodded, "and your name is Sasuke, or is it just a façade?"

Sasuke wondered why she thought it was a façade, but he didn't ask ― he just shook his head. "It is Sasuke," he said, and took another piece of apple.

"Well, I thought you were older, Sasuke. I'm fifteen, by the way," she grinned, and took the little dish to the sink.

As he watched her wash that little dish, he realized that perhaps ― and just _perhaps_ ― he was watching her too much. At least more that he was used to observe anyone. So, suddenly, he looked away. At the window. At anything but her. That orange tree, for example. Yeah.

She turned away from the sink ― the dish clean and dried in the cupboard ―, and saw him staring at her orange tree. The sunlight caught his face completely, and she noted how his dark eyes weren't that dark ― she could see shades of light gray around his pupils. Maybe it was just the sunlight, or maybe she was suddenly hallucinating, but in her eyes, he was ―

"You're beautiful,"

Sasuke glanced at her, not shocked at all, and sighed. Her heart skipped a beat when his eyes fixed on hers for that single second. She was surprised she had actually said it out loud, but strangely enough, she didn't regret it. He stood up, and she wasn't sure about what she was supposed to do or say ― so she kept silent and stood still in her place.

He turned away from her and walked towards the door. "I'm sorry," she apologized, taking a step forward, "let's just forget what I just said, okay? Please," she was feeling horribly self-conscious. She wasn't used to conversations, and she usually screwed up. Like now.

He had stopped when she spoke up, but he hadn't looked at her, not even once. He had never really looked at her in the eyes. There was some kind of wall in those eyes; she firmly believed ― eyes shouldn't (_couldn't_) be so cold and emotionless. She realized that, for some reason, she wanted those eyes ― no, she desperately wanted _him ―_ to look at her in the eyes. _Really_ look at her in the eyes. She wondered how it would feel.

He had said nothing either, so when he took another step towards the door (away from _her_) she instinctively stepped back, terrified.

"Are you leaving?" _Am I going to be on my own again?_

She swallowed. Why the hell did she allowed her stupid mouth to say stupidities all the time? She should have known better and kept quiet, but _no_, she just _had_ to open that noisy mouth of hers. She was so sorry, she was regretting it so much now, she wished she had kept silent.

Then he turned and faced her, looking at her ― no, not really. He was looking at some point behind her left shoulder, why? Why won't he _look_ at her? She wanted to scream in frustration.

"I'm just tired," his smooth voice said, "I'm not going anywhere, why would I?"

She almost cried in relief. "…oh," she sighed, and couldn't help the smile in her lips, "Nevermind. See you later, at dinner, or tomorrow, or ― I dunno," she said, fidgety.

He had actually intended to leave, but he had been hit by a thought ― she hadn't said 'hot' or 'sexy'. She had said _beautiful_. And that was the first time he ever heard that word used on him. No, that wasn't true, he was sure his mother had said it at least once, but that seemed so, so long ago. It seemed like another life.

When he left the room and went upstairs, she sat on the floor, feeling suddenly overwhelmed. She put a hand on her chest, her heart was beating, accelerated ― she had been so scared, so terrified by the mere thought of his leaving. She wouldn't have been able to handle that ― to caress her way out of loneliness and then let it go, just like that.

He was a stranger, she knew nothing about him; and yet, he had managed to give her some hope.

She chuckled, and shook her head. She knew better than that ― there wasn't such thing. Hope. Hope had always betrayed her and hurt her. She no longer believed in hope.

After a while ― it was almost noon already ― she realized something else, while gardening outside ―she was realizing a lot of things that day, apparently. She probably wasn't the only one who thought he was beautiful, and by saying it out loud, she had just proven herself one of them. Maybe that was why he wasn't surprised at all. Great, just great. She was a moron.

It was the truth, though; she still thought he was very handsome, but she figured she should keep quiet about that. She would only make him uncomfortable, and they were to live together. She should be more respectful.

* * *

When Sasuke woke up, he was very thirsty. His throat was dry and he couldn't swallow. He frowned a bit and went downstairs, expecting that girl to be there doing something. Maybe cooking ― he was feeling hungry again.

A scowl built up in his forehead when he referred to her in his mind as "that girl" ― he didn't know her name, and she knew his. Suspicion caught him. He would demand to know who she was as soon as he saw her. His mood darkened when he came to the conclusion that she wasn't home, after he had walked the entire house and found no traces of her.

Sasuke decided that he didn't care, that he should just go back to the kitchen and take a good glass of water, and then wait for her. He opened the refrigerator, and lifted a brow when he saw a small paper sticked on one of the water bottles. He swiftly took a sip from the bottle and then he read the small yellow note.

_Hey Sasuke! I hope your nap was nice. I'm sticking this on a bottle 'cause I figured you'd be thirsty sooner or later. Anyways ― you must have noticed by now that I'm not home, right? I'm at work, and I'll be back at 9pm more or less. I hate afternoon shifts ): You can do what you want, just don't screw anything up. There's fruit outside, but you can cook if you want. Oops, I should go now ― I'm a bit late. See'ya!_

Sasuke sweared inwardly. She hadn't put her signature, her name, anything.

* * *

The pink―haired girl had already finished her shift and was surrounded by books in the library. The building, which was attached to the local hospital, was full of local students. The amount of people studying there despite the small population never ceased to amaze her, and she always wondered why didn't they just go and study in a bigger city, like Konoha or Suna. She wasn't going to ask, of course.

No one ever dared to approach her, either. She was okay with that. She was better off with no bonds tying her there, as she planned to leave. Still, she could notice when they stared. And they were. She clenched her teeth and focused on her reading.

It was so freaking complex, and she reluctantly realized that it was impossible for her to finish it that night. She glared at the window and at the darkness outside, wishing the day was longer. The librarian wasn't going to let her take it home ―the librarian never let her take any books at home, ever. She sighed, closing the book ―_ Immunology II ―_ and walked to the bookshelf she had taken it from, placing it exactly where she found it.

As she exited the library, she pretended not to hear the whispers, pretended not to notice the glares.

She wanted to go home, she wanted to be home so badly. It broke her heart the fact that she didn't consider any place her home. That there was no place where she belonged to. That there was no place where she could feel safe in.

Annoyed, she shook her head. There was no need to think over those things ― she had already tried to go away, but then Sasuke had appeared and forced her to come back. She was tied to that damn town, and she was desperate. Perhaps… Perhaps, if she just asked him… Maybe he'd let her go. She had to try.

As she walked through the thin streets, she did notice ― she always had, and always will ― that glint of suspicion on everybody's eyes. She clenched her teeth and quickened her pace. She hated that town so much. She wanted everybody to burn, burn and burn in hell. Though she would probably burn in hell with them as well, she didn't really care. She was a coward, she knew that much ― all she ever dared to do was run away. And it didn't even work.

Her thoughts came to a halt when she had to focus a bit in order to grab her keys from her bag. She opened the door, wondering if Sasuke had found her note, and then realizing she had come back almost an hour an a half later thant she had calculated.

"…Sasuke?" she called, "I'm back,"

She blinked, and then, he was there, right in front of her. Scaring the hell out of her.

"Damn ― you-you're pretty fast," He smirked. Kind of. "Are all of you this fast?"

"You're late," he told her, turning and heading to the kitchen. She followed him.

"Yeah, sorry mom," she sighed. "Answer the question."

"All of us?" he watched her go outside, and now he was the one who followed.

"Shinobi, I mean," she clarified, jumping a little and grabbing a red, juicy apple.

"Most of us," he shrugged.

"Is it just training as well?" she asked, and he nodded.

"What's your name?"

She chuckled, and bit her apple. "You _are_ quite straightforward, aren't you?" He frowned. She laughed. "So, listen," she chuckled a bit more, and headed inside again, "I don't think it's fair."

"Elaborate."

She burst into laughter. He watched, allured. "Oh my god ― you even _talk_ like a soldier," He glared. "I mean, seriously, _elaborate_? What kind of word is that?" He glared at her until she stopped laughing ― at _him ―_ which was about three minutes later.

This girl was so damn annoying.

"Don't change the subject," he hissed.

"I'm not, I'm not! You're distracting me, Sasuke." He lifted a brow. "But, I will _elaborate_," she chuckled. "I don't think it's fair, that's all."

"I don't see what's not fair,"

"Your knowing my name, that's not fair. You know my house, my town, what I do for a living, everything but my name. I, on the other hand, just know your name and that you're shinobi. It's only fair that I don't tell you my name till I get to know you better."

"You know that's not gonna happen,"

"Yeah."

"So you won't tell me your name," he said, like testing her insanity.

"Nope."

"I see," he said thoughtfully. "I'll call you Sakura then."

She dropped her apple, stunned and wide-eyed, wondering if he had seen something with her name on it, but that was unlikely ― she had taken care of that. How had he…? "Huh?! W-why?!" she stammered, trying to mask her surprise.

"Your hair," he said.

"What's with my hair?" she exclaimed, taking a lock of her hair and analyzing it. "Oh… _Oh."_

"And I need to refer to you somehow. 'That girl' doesn't seem appropriate."

"I see," she grinned. "I'll be Sakura, then."

He was tricking her, she tried to believe. There was no way he could have guessed so accurately. She must have forgotten something, perhaps a book with her signature. She was so sure she had left nothing behind, though…

"You do realize I could go and ask a villager for your real name, right?"

Well, that was practically impossible. "They'd be too scared to answer, and you practically have a poster up your forehead that reads 'I'm an antisocial bastard', so…"

His brow twitched. The second day, and she calls him 'antisocial bastard'? The nerve of this girl. If only she knew who he was.

The picture of Naruto punching him in the arm and calling him bastard came to his mind. He quickly shrugged it off.

He let it go. At least for now. "Scared of me? Of shinobi, you mean?"

She swallowed and looked away, then nodded. "Of course," she said confidently, meeting his eyes again. "What else could they be afraid of?"

He widened his eyes slightly, "You're lying,"

"…and here I thought I was a good liar," she muttered, sarcastically.

He ignored her. "Which means they'd be afraid of you," He approached her, interested. "Why would they be afraid of _you_?"

"Hey, aren't you underestimating me a little bit?" she pouted. He stared at her, frowning. "Who do you think you are, anyways, making all these assumptions?"

Sasuke's suspicion grew as his face turned even more serious. He stepped forward, she stepped back.

"…what have you done to them?"

…

That was it.

"What the hell, Sasuke?!" she exclaimed angrily, punching him in the chest. He didn't even flinch. "Why don't you ask what did they do to _me_? Why does it always have to be me the guilty one, huh? You're just like them!"

He was silent. She probably hadn't realized it yet, but he had ― tears were running down her cheeks, and she seemed upset. What was he thinking, she _was_ upset. He could ask her ― what had happened, why was she so distressed, why did she hate that town ― he figured it wouldn't help at all. So he kept silent. He knew how.

She was hyperventilating, and she suddenly felt the moisture on her cheeks, so she touched them, and her fingertips ended up wet. She was crying. Her eyes widened, she hadn't cried for so long. And so she ran up the stairs, sobbing. She was so glad he wasn't trying to comfort her. It never worked.

Sasuke was bewildered. Those eyes ― those eyes mirrored his, nine years ago. He blinked, staring at the now empty stairs. A few seconds later, he ran outside.

He stopped the first passing-by he saw, who happened to be a man in his middle forties. "Do you know the girl who lives there?" he asked, nodding towards the house. "Do you know her name?"

The man glared at him, then turned in the direction he had nodded to. His eyes widened, and he started to stammer. "Y-you mean th-that house? N-no, boy, I know n-nothing," and he ran away.

Great, just great. Her hostess was crying and not willing to talk ― _he_ was not willing to talk ― and apparently everyone was too scared of her (the idea of it was still a little weird) to tell him what was going on, as he had suggested before. He sighed, and in half a second, he was in front of the same man.

"Talk," he ordered, tiredly.

The man's eyes widened in fear, "W-what are you!?" he exclaimed. People were staring, and then realization came up to his mind. "_S-shinobi!"_

Sasuke looked around as all the people surrounding and staring at them quickly ran away from him. In a few seconds, the street was empty and it was just Sasuke and that man. He looked back at him, narrowing his eyes and activating his Sharingan. This town had an issue with ninjas, and if he was to stay for a while, he better find out what was it. The man was trembling before his red eyes.

"I-I don't know anything, I sw-swear!"

"Yes you do," he said, sadistically amused. Did this people feared _her_ more thant they feared his eyes?

He was crying now, and Sasuke rolled his eyes. Pathetic. "Start talking," he pushed him.

The man gave in, and nodded weakily. "Please, don't kill me! W-what do you want to know?"

Sasuke tilted his head when he couldn't remember the question he had asked him in the first place, so instead he said, "why do you fear her?"

The man swallowed. "She has us threatened," he glared at Sasuke, though he knew he was glaring at her despite her not being there.

"How so?" he threatingly stepped forward.

"She has a deal with Amegakure, with Akatsuki!"

Sasuke's eyes widened slightly. Did her meeting with his brother have something to do with that? Anyways, she had tried to prevent him from going to Ame, right? Something was wrong.

"Why would she do that?" he asked, already suspecting.

"I swear to god I don't know, I wasn't here! That's what I was told," he was almost begging him to spare him his life.

"Tsk,"

* * *

Sakura laughed as she prepared coffee. She had gotten up early the next morning, and she had bought some for breakfast. Of course she had asked for some tea, but it was way too expensive. So, instead, she bought seeds. She would have fresh tea in two, maybe three months.

"I can't believe you," she said, still chuckling; and added some sugar to her cup, avoiding his, because now she knew he didn't like sweet things. "Tell me, tell me," she gave a cup to Sasuke, who was sitting on the kitchen chair, "was he trembling?"

She had to be some kind of sadic.

"I mean, I'm not a sadic,"

There it was again. How the hell did she do that?!

"But this is really amusing. You know, they all wanna seem badass, though they see a shinobi and they are suddenly a bunch of chickens! Unbelievable! ― No, not really,"

She talked so easily about it, even if she had burst into tears in front of him just the day before. Sasuke decided to test her.

"You wouldn't talk to me, so I had to go and find out what was happening somehow," he started, his eyes locked on hers. In actuality, he was glad that she was willing to talk about what he'd done with that man ― that meant she was willing to talk about what the hell was wrong with this stupid town. By now, he was wondering how he'd got here. Stupid town. Tsk.

She frowned for a second, and then, it was gone. Her face was blank, but he knew better. "Yeah, well, sorry about that," she apologized, not meeting his eyes. Then she faced him again, smiling. "It won't happen again, okay? Now, go on, what did he tell you?"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "That you had made a deal with Akatsuki."

She gaped, and was silent for a few seconds. He was relieved in some way ― she had nothing to do with that.

"_What?!_" she yelled at him, exasperated. She stood up anxiously and started to walk in circles around the table.

"Don't shout," he told her, knowing she wouldn't listen to him.

Surprisingly, she did listen. She stopped walking and sat down quickly, looking at him.

"I need to calm down, right?" He didn't answer. "Yeah, I know, I need to keep calm. Just breath. In… Out… Okay. I ― I read a book that said that freaking out didn't help, so," she breathed in deeply. "Now. What else did this stupid attempt of a man say?"

He smirked. "He wasn't here. That was what he was told," he repeated his words.

She stared.

"I hate them." She said, looking outside the window.

Just like that, a simple statement. Sasuke could see through those calm words, Sasuke could see the same words in his own mouth years ago. He could see the hatred, he knew she was speaking the truth. Besides, she wasn't the kind of person who'd lie about these things.

"Seriously, Sasuke, I _hate_ them. These people are what I'm running away from."

She couldn't believe she was saying these things, but to finally listen to what they said about her was like a trigger. Now, she had someone to say this things to. She was begging him, in her mind, to just listen to her. He didn't have to give her advice, or help her. Just listen.

"Do you want…?" she trailed off, wondering if he'd care at all about what she had to say. No one usually cared about these things, so why would he? He was just a stranger. And it wasn't like he would tell something back to her, like where he was from, or who he really was, but she wanted someone to listen to her so badly. So she asked. "Do you want to listen to me?"

"Your story, you mean?" he said, blankly.

"Yes. Would you like to?"

"It's none of my business," he warned her. _You don't have to._

"I don't care," she said, "I don't care, really. Please. Would you listen?"

"…fine."

Sasuke had never seen her smile like that.

…then again, he only knew her for two days.

"Like everyone, I had parents once," she started, now looking outside the window once again. She wasn't sure she could talk about it facing his eyes. "I can't remember them quite well, they faces are just a blur in my mind." She paused. "I must be an awful daughter…" she sighed. "But that's not the point. They were shinobi, they were from Kiri, yes, so far away… I don't really know why they would come over here, but they did. I know nothing about shinobi, but to me, they were the most powerful beings I'd ever seen."

Her face lit up for a second. Sasuke noticed, but he was silent.

"It seems that the villagers here didn't like shinobi, so they were constantly plotting against them. We should have gone away, but they always insisted in staying, and I was just nine; so I didn't have much of a choice. Once, the village decided to hire some other shinobi and kill my parents. This time it worked," she said bitterly. "And I was only saved because I was in the basement and able to hide from the fire. I was supposed to die that afternoon."

"Fire," Sasuke repeated.

"Mm-hmm," she nodded. "Fire. An enourmous fire that burned half of the village. That was their way of eliminating my parents. Oh, they also killed many innocent villagers in the process, by the way." She swallowed. "I think I can understand… My parents were kind of superior, they were the only shinobi among civilians. And they were foreigners. A threat."

"You understand?" he repeated once more, incredulous.

She looked at him in the eyes, but it was just for a second. "Yes, but that doesn't mean I can forgive. I can't and I won't." A pause. "Sometimes, I wonder what it was like. To live without hatred, that is."

Sasuke didn't answered. He didn't know himself.

"And so they died, and I was left alone, with the house and the inheritance. I was so scared, I trusted no one. I wanted to go away, to had nothing to do with this stupid town I hated but my fear wouldn't let me. When we met, that was the first time I had the courage to try to run away." She smiled.

"Right after they died, I had no one to help me with the bodies, so I had to bury them myself." She narrowed her eyes, and he knew she was remembering those days. "After a day it was done, so it's just a blur in my mind. I was a child, Sasuke, I was a child. And I was left behind with my parents' bodies. Can you understand? They have no soul. No soul."

Now he understood. Her hatred. He understood indeed. He couldn't imagine himself being sane if he had had to bury his family. He would probably be ―

"What I can't understand," Sasuke said, interrupting her, "is why you didn't go away right after they died."

"I was just nine! I was so scared Sasuke, you can't even _imagine_ what it was like. I couldn't sleep for weeks. I was so skinny, I didn't want to go to the market, and I had no money. Sometimes I heard my parents screaming to me, yelling that it was my fault."

"However, you were supposed to die that afternoon, as you say," Sasuke cut her. He knew that those kind of memories were not to be remembered. "You were in danger here. I bet you knew that,"

Sakura sighed. "I guess this is where Ame gets into scene," she muttered. "My parents had friends, shinobi friends, it seems. Those friends were from Ame, you know it's just fifty miles away, right?" Sasuke nodded. He was very aware. "They were so nice with me. They stayed a few days and were horrified when I told them I had them buried in the garden, because I didn't know where to put them.

"I guess they were furious. So they threatened the population, and told me I just had to phone them if something went wrong, and they would make them pay. That's why they fear me. They know what these guys are capable of."

"Is that it?" he said. "What about Akatsuki?"

"I've told you Akatsuki is dangerous," she said, "but not everyone in Ame is a member. Actually, I believe they're prisioners. But anyways, those are just rumours; I've never talked to an Akatsuki member. Except once. I've told you that, too."

"I see."

"I wasn't planning to come back," she added, now looking at him. "So I want to make a deal with you."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes.

"It's perfectly reasonable," she tried to convince him. "I offer you my house and all my money. You can stay. It's all yours, I don't care. You'll have your place to think and train and plan your strategy. But I _need_ to go away from this town."

Her eyes were begging him. He looked away. "No."

She was silent, and looked away as well. "I see."

The chair made an awful noise when she stood up. "I see." She repeated.

Sasuke shot his eyes back at her. "Aren't you going to ask why?" Because he had a lot of reasons. He had been enumerating them since he met her, he knew she would come up with this at some time.

"Nope," she smiled. It was faked. It didn't fit her face. "I guess fate wants me here, in this stupid, damn town."

"You believe in fate," Sasuke said, bewildered.

"…not really."

He wondered what she was thinking. Her priority was to go away, and she just gave in like that? It didn't make any sense. Perhaps she was thinking of escaping anyways.

They were silent as she washed both cups.

"I'm not going to escape," she read his mind again.

"Why not?"

"Why would I? I've lived here since I was born. A couple of months won't do any harm." _I hope_. "And ― now I have someone to talk to, if you don't mind."

He smirked. "Do you have some kind of supernatural power?"

She turned away from the sink and looked at him like he was insane. Then she burst into laughs. "Oh my god, your face," she chuckled, "you're seriously asking such a thing!"

"Don't laugh," he frowned. He didn't like to be laughed at. "Do you read minds or something?"

"I wish I did," she grinned, "why?"

"…nevermind,"

She placed the now clean cups on the cupboard, and sighed. "Okay, I'm ready for work. I'll be back late in the evening, alright? You can ― I dunno, do your shinobi things in the garden. It's big enough, isn't it?" Sasuke nodded. The backyard was large. Enormous, he'd say. But he never used that kind of adjectives. "Great. Don't screw up, okay?" He stared. "Awesome. See you tonight!" And she went off.

* * *

A/N: I'm so proud of this! I've corrected it twice, so I hope everything's alright (I know it's not, I always miss something, lmao). Anyways, as I was saying, I'm so proud of this. Almost six thousand words, so long D: And I finished it relatively quickly, and my ideas are flowing. Forget about three/four parts. There'll be about five or six. Apparently I'm not able to sum anything up, just look at this chapter. Oh, a big THANK YOU goes for all those who have subscribed and reviewed. And another one in advance for those who will. Yay!


	3. Part Three

"You've changed," he eventually said.

**

* * *

Tsubasa**_  
By Ailu-Chan

* * *

_

"Not really."

* * *

**.Part Three.**

"These books," Sasuke said, walking in the living room with an old brown book in his hands, "are too advanced for a nurse."

Sakura looked up from the book she was reading, and narrowed her eyes. "Yeah, perhaps," she said, and returned to her reading. That book was in her bedroom, on her desk. Among others.

This was the first time she wasn't willing to continue a conversation. He approached and sat down near her, in a separate coach. He put the book on the little table there was in the middle and eyed one of the titles that appeared in the index. "Neurosurgery, huh. Definitely too advanced."

She cursed inwardly. He evidently wasn't going to let her read, so she slowly closed her book and stared at him. "It's a book, Sasuke. What's the big deal?"

"They're too advanced for a nurse," he repeated. "Why would you read books like these?"

She still wasn't sure why he would care at all, but replied nonetheless. "I don't plan to stay a nurse forever, of course," she said evenly. "I'll become a doctor some day."

Sasuke nodded. "I see."

"Not here, of course."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Aa."

"…somewhere else…"

He decided he better shut up. He knew where this was going.

Sakura's lips frowned. "Sorry," she chuckled. "Anyways, you haven't told me where you're from," and so she decided to take this opportunity to ask her questions.

Sasuke glared. "I don't need you to know that."

"True, you don't," she said, "but I'd like to know anyways."

She waited; she knew he would talk eventually. She started to read the cover of her book again, and then she tidied the little table in front of them.

"Konoha," he said.

She gasped. "Ko-Konoha!?"

He glared. Oh, so he didn't really want to talk about it. She didn't care at the moment, though. This piece of information was not what she was expecting. That village was so far away ― it was almost unreachable. Yeah, that was the word. "What the hell are you doing here, then? Konoha is awesome, as well as Suna."

Sasuke wisely decided not to answer that, and instead asked, "What makes you think that?"

"I ― Well, ― I dunno. Everybody talks about those two villages, and I wish I had been born there. Have you heard of Konoha's Central Hospital? It's amazing. It has two MRI rooms, can you believe it?!"

"I've been there," he said, glad that the conversation hadn't turned ugly.

"Really? And now Tsunade, one of the Sannin, is the Hokage! The medical facilities must be at their finest ― Hey, wait, why am I telling you this? You must know this already, right?" He smirked and nodded. "Oh shut up. But why did you left?"

He wasn't entirely comfortable with this topic, but he sighed and gave in. "I needed power," he replied evenly, quietly. He just didn't recognize himself anymore. Why was he speaking about these things?

"I see," she said, surprising him with her quiet response. "Weren't there any powerful ninja that could train you?" her voice was soft; she didn't want to uncomfort him. She needed to know.

"Yes, but they weren't enough."

She nodded. He wondered why she was so understanding. She didn't even belong to the shinobi world, she didn't know anything. "Are you planning to come back?"

"…maybe," She noticed, she noticed how his lips curved slightly upwards.

Her face lit up, "Really? Would you take me with you?"

"No."

"Aw, why? I've always wanted to go to Konoha!" She pouted.

"Konoha has no place for you,"

Her face fell. "F—for me? How so?" she raised a brow and crossed her arms, still pouting. "Believe me, I could live anywhere. Why not Konoha?"

"There aren't many civilians compared to the amount of shinobi there, and it's a common target of foreign attacks. It's dangerous."

"Well I believe I'd be safer in Konoha rather than here, and in any case it's not your problem, is it?" she said, stubbornly; and grinned when he kept silent. "But anyways, aren't people there looking for you? Didn't you have teammates or something? Shinobi are always teamed up,"

"Yes, they're looking for me."

Then Sasuke seriously questioned his sanity, wondering what the hell was wrong with him, no — what the hell was wrong with this girl (Sakura, he corrected himself in his mind), because he seemed to spill out all his life to her and he strangely didn't feel worried now that she knew (not really, because she knew nothing, but still). Yet, he wasn't supposed to just go and tell the first person he came across all his life. He decided to shut his mouth and be more careful.

He had the feeling that Naruto would get on surprisingly well with Sakura. Lost in his thoughts, he was brought back to reality when she spoke, "…but they haven't found you yet." He said nothing. "I see…"

Sasuke knew she had so many questions, and that she was restraining herself from asking. She knew he didn't want to talk about his past, neither did she, so she was okay with that. Then again, she had talked anyways, and she expected to know _something_ about him. She figured it was enough.

"You haven't trained today," she said, quietly, noticing how that afternoon had passed so silently.

She saw how his dark eyes narrowed, and how he looked away in some way. Frustration. She knew that. She smiled sadly. Once again, he said nothing. "Your teammates are supposed to come tomorrow," she tried to make him speak, because she liked his voice. It made her feel safe, in some twisted way; because she shouldn't feel safe around shinobi.

"Aa."

She bit her lip. "Are they going to stay for a few days, or just a couple of minutes?"

He frowned. "They're not staying," he said. One chakra signature was okay, but two or three would be shifty. It was dangerous for them to stay in one place.

"Okay, then," she stood up. "Would you like some dinner?"

"No,"

She frowned. "It's not healthy, you know," He just glared, but she smiled once again. She was glad he had actually _talked_ to her. "Anyways, goodnight, Sasuke."

* * *

It was like this.

Sasuke had priorities. He had to find his brother and kill him once and for all. He had to find out who helped his brother kill his clan, and then kill that shinobi as well. Then he could let himself be found by Naruto and be dragged back to Konoha. He didn't care for Hebi, but he supposed that asking for a permission to stay in Konoha was the least thing he could do. And then he could rebuild his clan. If he wanted to. Yeah.

For now, killing his brother was on top, and he didn't have much time to think about what was next. He hadn't trained for so long just for nothing. He was willing to do _anything_, that man had to be dead ― nothing could be in his way. He trusted no one.

* * *

It was like this.

Sakura had priorities. She had to run away from that village before some crazy paranoid villager killed her. She had to run away from those ghosts and from that house and from those people who hated her. She'd like to travel, but she wasn't sure. She was weak and she was just a nurse, so she figured that that was pretty dangerous. She had to be a medic, because she had always dreamt of being a medic, so she had to find some place, some university to study.

Being a shinobi ― it was too late. Shinobi were trained since their childhoods, and she was fifteen and she knew nothing about fighting. Being what her parents were was out of reach.

So she'd be the best medic ever.

For now, escaping from that place was on top. She had had her opportunity, but Sasuke had kept her from running away. It wouldn't happen again. She would _go,_ and she would not come back, and she would be _free_. She trusted no one.

* * *

She woke up when she heard her own screams.

Luckily she hardly ever remembered what happened in those nightmares, but every time she woke up, her heart was pounding and she could feel the fear running through her veins, even though she didn't know what she feared exactly. This time it was exactly the same, and she was prepared to lie down once again and calm herself down, because it wasn't like someone would come to her, waken up by her screams, to comfort her. So she managed, she had always managed to breath and sleep again.

This time, it was different.

Within two seconds, Sasuke was in her room, searching for something outside the window ― his eyes narrowed and shirtless, and she gasped. Was he trying to kill her? His sword was unsheathed, for that matter. He had scared the hell out of her. She was still breathing heavily, and couldn't quite manage any words out of her mouth, so she just stared and waited for her heart to calm down.

He analyzed her garden ― and then he turned to her, and ―

"Your… ― Your eyes…!" she gaped.

Sasuke quickly realized he had activated his Sharingan, and that she had seen it, and _honestly could his life get any worse_? His eyes were black once again as soon as his brain registered the order to turn off his kekkei-genkai. This was so troublesome. She would probably relate him with Itachi instantly, because she was that smart, he could give her that.

Of course Sakura did relate him to that Akatsuki man, and she straightened her back in fear, but said nothing. She was speechless.

"You were screaming," he stated.

She didn't know if she wanted to know what was going on anymore. So she clinged to that opportunity of changing the subject. The situation had suddenly turned awkward, and now she realized, he was truly dangerous, and she should have taken this whole shinobi thing more seriously.

"Yeah ―" she managed to speak up, staring like an idiot at his now dark eyes. "Nightmares. Don't worry ― I'm fine,"

_As if, _Sasuke thought, people didn't scream like that when sleeping, even if they had nightmares. And, why wasn't she asking about his eyes? She asked about _every damn thing_.

"If you say so," he said, and started to walk away.

Damn this annoying girl. He had actually thought something bad was happening to her, and the fact that he didn't detect any chakra signatures besides hers and his own didn't help. He had been worried for a moment.

"S-sorry, Sasuke, I didn't mean to wake you up," she apologized.

She felt the urge to apologize. He seemed angry, and she was now scared of him.

"Nevermind. Just sleep." It didn't sound like he meant it, but it was better than nothing — and nothing was what she got every night.

The truth is that she couldn't get back to sleep that night. Those red eyes were chasing her in her mind.

* * *

She waited until she saw the sun rising through her window, and just then she allowed herself to get up. She dressed and prepared breakfast, and after she ate, she started to read one of the books she had somewhere. It was Sunday anyways, and she didn't have to work. Sasuke was up a bit later than usual, and he ate his breakfast silently.

"Do you know who's coming today?" she asked, curious. Warily. It was just all too awkward.

"Probably Karin," he uttered.

"Oh." And to think she had even thought about preparing breakfast for his team too. She wouldn't do anything for that bitch who ― who called her bitch.

And as she was standing up, she heard the kitchen windows fly open and a couple of boots landing on her floor.

"Here you are, Sasuke-kun," the woman said, and Sakura couldn't see her from where she was, yet she didn't move. So that was Karin. She had met her before, but… That just didn't count. "It took me a while to find you… So this is the brat's house?" Karin assumed. She also noticed the small chakra signature behind one of the walls, and supposed that was her. She acted like she didn't knew she was there — though it was a bit strange of a simple civilian like her to have such a chakra. It was small, but it felt like it was restraining itself.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Anything on Itachi?" he asked. As he had supposed, Karin would be the first to come. She had probably been lurking around for the last few days waiting for the exact moment to make her appearance.

Karin shrugged. "I've done everything I could," she said apologetically, "but I was only able to narrow the search area by a few miles." Sasuke nodded. He didn't expect to find his brother that fast. Itachi knew how to cover his steps quite well.

The red-headed looked around and sat down on a chair, next to Sasuke. "So, what's next?"

"Keep looking,"

Karin frowned. He could at least offer her something to drink. "I know, Sasuke-kun. I could use some rest, though,"

Sasuke tried to remember why he had chosen her to be in his team. Then he recalled her tracking abilities ― she _did_ find him after all ― and sighed. "You can't stay here," he said.

"Well I can look for an inn or something…" she offered, remembering his encounter with this pink-haired girl in which he said there were no inns, so she'd be forced to stay in that house anyways.

"I meant that you can't stay in this town."

Now she frowned. She was tired; it wasn't just because she wanted to be with Sasuke. She needed a shower and clothes and food. And a good night's sleep. "Why not?" she whined, annoyed.

"It's not safe," he said, and Karin squealed inwardly. Did he care for her? Her eyes lit up. "Sakura could end up injured if someone finds us, and that wasn't a part of our deal."

So it wasn't for her, it was just for that little brat. She crossed her arms. "Why do you even care? It's not like she's ―"

And in that moment, Sakura decided to make her appearance, with a fake smile in her face. "Good morning," she said.

"You must be Sakura," Karin said warily. "It's not polite to hear other's conversations, you know, _Sakura." _As a matter of fact, Sakura didn't like how she'd said her name.

"Actually, that's how I call her," Sasuke intervened.

Karin eyed him, surprised, and then eyed her, suspicion in her eyes. "Would you like something to eat?" Sakura politely asked, filling a glass with water. Now, Karin had her dignity, and she knew better than to accept _anything_ from this slutty little brat. "I'm fine," she spat out, and then she turned to Sasuke, who took another sip from his tea. "Why's that?" It was obvious to Sasuke what she was referring to.

"She won't tell me her name," Sasuke said, blankly.

Karin gaped.

"You ― _what_? You annoying little whore, why would you do that?" She couldn't even imagine what kind of girl wouldn't tell Sasuke her name. This chick was insane. Sakura just glared, but said nothing. She turned away from her and went off to clean the house, just like every morning.

"You don't know her name!" she yelled at Sasuke, exasperated. "I don't like this, Sasuke, we should just go away ―"

"Karin ―"

"―find some nice place to stay and wait for the others. If you know what I mean,"

Sakura was listening to the whole exchange between the two shinobi, and couldn't help but to gape at the innuendo.

Sasuke sighed. "Keep looking," he repeated, "I'm busy."

_Yeah, you seem pretty busy,_ Karin thought. She clenched her teeth and stood up. "Alright then. Are you sure about this, Sasuke-kun?" A glare. Karin swallowed and nodded. "See you in three weeks then, I guess…"

"Right."

And just like that, she vanished.

* * *

"So," Sakura said, making some rice balls a few hours later, "this girl, Karin, right?" Sasuke nodded. "For how long has she been offering herself to you like that?"

He raised a brow, and she chuckled at his expression, "God, don't you tell me you haven't noticed,"

"I've noticed," he said, now smirking.

Sakura widened her eyes, "oh my god ― you… you did her!" She blushed and looked away.

Sasuke's lips frowned in disgust, "of course I didn't,"

"I mean, it's none of my business, it's just ― ew, Sasuke. I thought you had better taste!"

So now she was insulting him.

"I did _not_ do her ― no need to be jealous, Sakura."

She gaped at him. How dare he!? "You ― You… Ugh! You're impossible!"

"And you're annoying,"

She glared. He smirked.

When she resumed making the rice balls and turned away from him, she blushed. Heavily. She considered to bring up how his eyes had reddened that morning in order to brush off the previous topic, but decided against it.

* * *

The next day, Sasuke didn't train either. Sakura watched him as he came in and out the house, and he seemed upset about something. She didn't care enough to bother, and from his face she could tell it was better not to ask, so she went to work and then came back, and everything was just like she left it.

On Tuesday morning, she woke up and cooked breakfast. She ate hers and waited for him to come downstairs and have his, but after an hour of waiting — which she spent comfortably reading another book — she decided it was better to take a look and see if everything was okay. She couldn't leave to work without knowing what was wrong.

She knocked the door quietly, waiting for him to open it and glare at her, but nothing happened. She knocked again, and again. Sighing, she grabbed the doorknob and slowly opened it.

Her guest room wasn't very big, and Sasuke's bed was just five feet away from the door. From where she was, she could see him sweating and frowning in his sleep. Her medic instincts took control and approached him, placing her palm on his forehead and opening his eyes with her fingers.

"Shit."

She ran downstairs and grabbed a few cloths, and dampened them in cold water. She ran upstairs again and entered Sasuke's room, this time much faster than the first time. She opened the window and shut the curtains, letting the fresh air in, and then placed one cloth on his forehead. His frown noticeably softened and his muscles relaxed a bit. She covered him with a light comforter and sighed.

He had a hell of a fever, that hadn't probably developed in just one night. Which only meant he was feeling bad before, and he hadn't told her. What kind of shinobi lives with a medic — she didn't consider herself a nurse anymore — and doesn't ask when he isn't feeling well? That must be against every survival rule, she was sure. Then she understood — that was why he hadn't trained these last days.

Sakura wondered what could have caused the fever. Yes, it could be a virus or a simple cold, but that was unlikely since she wasn't sick herself and she couldn't picture a shinobi having a cold. It could also be foul food, but she had eaten the same food he had, so that didn't make any sense.

Sasuke had woken when she put that cold cloth on his forehead, feeling slightly dizzy and after a few seconds he realized he had to be sick. He cursed inwardly, but figured it would be better if he pretended to be asleep and just did so.

She felt the urge to stay by his side just in case, though she knew she shouldn't. She bit her lip and exited the room, closing the door behind her. She decided to go outside, the tomatoes were almost ready and she was sure Sasuke would like to have a couple as soon as possible. She smiled — it would be a nice surprise. Just when she passed the main door, someone knocked.

Sakura blinked. It had been years since someone knocked that door — she figured it had to be one of Sasuke's teammates. The villagers never talked to her, let alone knock at her door. She opened it slowly and found Suigetsu, as she recalled he was named. He grinned.

"I figured it would be rude if I just came through the window," he chuckled, and she wondered if he knew her teammate had done just that. "Oh, sorry," he apologized, and offered his hand to her, "My name's Suigetsu. I'm with Sasuke."

"I remember you," she said a little resentfully, recalling how he had caught her neck. She ignored his outstretched hand. "Come in,"

She turned around and walked away, and Suigetsu came in. He was trying to be polite, so he closed the door as well. He followed her and found her in the kitchen.

"Would you like something to eat?" She asked, almost as politely as he had introduced himself.

"Water," he answered automatically. She eyed him suspiciously and nodded, giving him a glass and a bottle full of fresh water, and letting him have a seat in the kitchen table. She leaned on the cupboard, crossing her arms.

Within seconds he had finished the whole bottle. "You really were thirsty, huh?" She couldn't help but ask, suppressing a smirk.

Suigetsu smiled. "Yeah, something like that. Anyways, where's Sasuke? I need to report to him."

"Why are you even trying to be polite?" She retorted, placing another bottle on the table, just for courtesy. He drank all of it again and Sakura simply decided she wasn't going to give him any more water.

"Sasuke likes you, and I guess we didn't have a good start," he shrugged.

"Don't mention it," she smirked. "What do you mean by 'Sasuke likes you'?"

"He actually _talked_ to you. And didn't left you unconscious, so yeah, I kinda figured that,"

"I see,"

"Where is he?"

Huh. Persistent. She didn't know if she should reveal he was sick, but then again, this was one of his own teammates, and Sasuke would never choose someone untrustworthy. "He's having a fever," she answered.

Suigetsu blinked. Twice. Then, "_what?_"

"Hey, calm down, it's just a fever!"

"No, no, you don't understand, we've been wandering with him for years and he has never been sick," _and I guess I just can't imagine Sasuke having a fever_, he added in his mind.

"Well, he's not superman, you know."

_Well, you should see him fight_, he wanted to add, but bit his tongue. "So I can't talk to him?"

"He's asleep, but there shouldn't be any problem when he's awake," she answered.

Suigetsu nodded. "What's your name?" he asked suddenly.

She opened and closed her mouth several times, not sure what to answer.

"It's Sakura," a voice coming from the stairs said, "and I'm awake."

_Is he always gonna answer for me when someone asks my name?_ She inwardly wondered, but smiled nevertheless. "Sasuke," she called out, and watched him entering the room, his eyes narrowed, like he was having a big headache. "Are you feeling better?" He glared at her and she knew she should shut up. She looked away and placed a little dish full of sliced tomatoes. "I'll be upstairs," and with that she left the room.

There was a strange silence until they finally heard Sakura lock the door of her room.

"Damn, she's hot," Suigetsu sighed, relaxing.

"She's fifteen," Sasuke reminded him.

"So what? Two years. Big deal," he argued. "Have you done her yet?"

"Did you find out anything at all?" Sasuke retorted, trying to pretend he had never asked that.

Suigetsu chuckled. "Actually, yes. People in this big city nearby claim to have seen Hoshigaki Kisame, which means Uchiha Itachi too. No offense, but this guy and his blue skin is far more noticeable than your brother."

"Which city?"

"Hey, I don't even know its name. It's near Iwa. I'm not surprised, though — that place is like a major supply center for shinobi. I've gone a couple of times —" he leaned forward on his chair, "you really need to see those silver windmill shuriken. I know you _love _them."

"Stay to the topic, Suigetsu. Any idea as to where did they go?"

"I'm afraid not, but this was just yesterday, and they've told me Kisame was injured, so they must be close… I guess,"

"Aa. Anything else?"

Suigetsu smirked. "Oh, I'm feeling so useful today. Can I have a tomato?" He asked, because judging from how Sasuke was eating those, they must be really delicious. He grunted and Suigetsu grinned, taking a slice. "I've come across Juugo too. I told him to narrow his search area and he should have news by now." Sasuke raised a brow. "You know, his weird bird communication thingy."

The Uchiha nodded. He could feel it — he was so close.

* * *

"You´re hurt," she said suddenly.

Sasuke had been staring at her for a few minutes now, in silence, and was slightly surprised when she broke that silence. She was ironing in the kitchen and he was still feeling dizzy after Suigetsu had left, hours before; so he couldn´t train — which left him with basically nothing to do.

He was distracted, and it took him about fifteen seconds to actually process what she had said. He noted it wasn´t even a question (then again, she was a nur— medic), and that she was paying attention to her ironing, not even bothering to look at him. He suppressed a smirk.

Still, he decided not to answer. It would be just a while until she demanded his attention, but he took it anyways, and resumed his previous activity — her hair.

The window behind her was wide open (_this place stinks_, she had said, frowning) and he could see the sunset from his chair, since none of the little houses were very tall (and now that he thought about it, hers was the only one with a first floor). The sun was slowly melting with the horizon — dying the sky a yellowish orange, that turned into red as it faded away in a dark blue. The sunlight that entered through the window was shamelessly playing with her hair — or his eyes.

It was a mix of colors he had never seen before. Her hair was blond, red and pink at the same time. With her slight movements, it danced over her shoulders, mocking him with their color. He discovered that, if he tilted his head slightly to the right, it would all seem red for a second.

"Oi, Sasuke,"

He was amazed — and (perhaps, just a bit) fascinated.

"…are you even listening to me?"

He blinked and looked into her eyes — she was glaring at him now. She probably wanted to heal him, but he didn´t like being healed and all the stuff — let alone having a stranger do it.

Then again, he would need to be fit if he wanted to defeat (_kill_) his brother and he couldn´t train properly with that annoying pain on his side. He didn´t trust Sakura even after those three weeks (in which she might have done more for him than anyone) but he´d surely have her rather than some random medic at the local hospital.

"Tell me what it is," damn, she was insistent, "it has to be rather deep. It bleeds through its own scar and I´m sure it hurts like hell. That´s why you aren´t training right now. Let me heal you, yes?" She smiled warmly.

Sasuke sighed as he realized there was no other way. He stood up and Sakura happily unplugged the iron and approached him. He took off his haori, revealing a twenty-centimeter-long wound on his left side. Sakura widened her eyes, stared at the wound and then flipped to Sasuke´s eyes.

"Holy _shit_!" she exclaimed angrily. She quickly emptied the kitchen table and turned on the lights. The effect on her hair was suddenly gone, as she ordered, "lie down, Sasuke. This is serious, no shit!"

She must have assumed he would obey, because she didn´t press him further than that — instead she turned around and opened a drawer. She placed two sharp steel knives on the table and stormed off the kitchen, "I´m gettin´ some alcohol!"

He looked at the glaring knives on the table and raised a brow. He'd been through a lot worse than this, sure, but the sight of a fifteen-year-old girl digging into his flesh was certainly not appealing. He heard Sakura searching the cupboards in the bathroom upstairs (weird, since he hadn´t heard her going through the stairs), and reminded himself that she was the one who knew about this stuff here — he didn´t know if it was that serious, but it surely hurt like hell, even though he was somewhat numb to this kind of physical pain.

Sakura was glad to see he had listened to her when she returned to the kitchen; a bottle of alcohol, bandages and towels in her hands. She smiled sadly, this was going to hurt. A lot, most likely. She took a chair and sat down; her head was just in front of the wound. Sasuke was blankly staring at the ceiling.

"Do you really know how to do this?" He asked, and his words could have been those of an unsecure little boy, were it not for his coldness and lack of emotion. She smiled before she could help it. In her mind, she sometimes had some fun trying to figure out what he would do, or say, next. He was so predictable, at least to her. She knew he was unsure of her skills.

"Of course," she kindly replied, "though it might hurt just a little. Try to relax, okay?"

Her voice was soft, and she spoke like a medic trying to soothe a patient´s pain. He smirked. "Don´t worry about the pain, just do what you gotta do," he said, harshly. She bit her lip and mumbled an _okay_, nodding. _Of course, _she thought, _shinobi must be used to pain._

Something else occurred to him. "Have you done this before?" Blunt as always.

"Nope." The truth just rolled off her tongue, but she wasn´t sure if it was because he could see through her lies, or because she still was somewhat afraid of him. Either way, she didn´t even have time to figure out a lie before she said it.

Sasuke lifted his head to glare at her. She chuckled in spite of herself and examined his wound, feeling its temperature and analyzing its swollen surroundings. "Well, what did you expect? It´s not like there´re many wounds like this in this town," It was pretty clean, she observed, but she had to be sure. "Could you please raise your arm?" she asked, and Sasuke saw how her expression had suddenly turned serious and professional; her green eyes, analytical and meticulous. He obeyed and lazily threw his arm behind his head, fully exposing his wounded side to her. "Excellent," she praised him, and leaned in. She flinched as she examined it, every now and then, and finally she leaned back on her chair and sighed, closing her eyes. He looked at her expectantly as she slowly tied back her (pink, pink, _oh so pink_) hair in a tight ponytail.

It made her look completely different, Sasuke thought, but he quickly dismissed the thought as she started to talk, putting on a couple of white later gloves on her hands. When she opened her eyes, they were reprimanding and glaring.

"You should have told me before," she said severely. He had it ever since he had moved with her and she was still wondering how the hell she didn´t notice. When she had had that nightmare, she recalled, he had been shirtless — it was too dark, apparently.

He didn´t excuse himself, but she didn´t expect him to. She would have lectured him, were it not because she knew it would be completely useless on him. So instead she said, "It´s pretty much infected. You already had this when we met, didn´t you?" She didn´t even give him time to answer before she continued, "so, this is what we´re gonna do. I´ll clean this up and bandage it up. I´ll fill you up with antibiotics and we´ll see how it evolves. If you let me work on it, you´ll be fine in one week or two —"

"I don´t _have_ one or two weeks," he spat out. Itachi would escape again and he couldn´t afford that. Who knew when he would find a trace again. Sakura could imagine why he didn´t have time — he was looking for that man and she was positive his team had given him important information. She truly wished Sasuke completed his goal, but a selfish thought hit her: at least he would be there, with her, a couple of weeks more.

Sasuke hadn´t noticed how much Sakura´s glare had faded, not until she glared at him again, frowning. "Deal with it," she retorted in his same tone, "this would´ve been easier if you´d told me before. You _knew_ I was a medic, Sasuke."

He was annoyed by her, so he did what he did best —

"Nurse," he replied coldly, contemptuously, displeased.

Sakura stopped cleaning the knife in her hands. "Excuse me?"

"You´re just a nurse."

She proudly held his gaze, even when she wanted to run away from those eyes. Her chest was swallowed by a shattering pain that kept her from breathing for a few seconds.

—push people away. He was pretty good at it.

And then, she swallowed, and smiled a sad, bitter smile; nodding fiercely. He was so cruel. Three weeks, and he already knew how to break her heart. And he was doing so on purpose, in order to shatter her. So cruel.

"…just a nurse. I guess you´re right."

She fought back the tears.

* * *

A/N: Well I guess I took my time writing this. I'm sorry D: I'm trying to hurry up the argument and at the same time make it all realistic, which I'm telling you - it's not easy! And it's giving me trouble. But anyways! A big THANK YOU goes to littlefreakshow, who offered to beta this fic and Part III is her first betaed chapterrr! 8D So, THANK YOU HUN. Amazing jooob! (I'm actually relieved. Having to correct stuff I wrote myself can be a little exasperating.)

Hope you liked it. And just for you to know, this started as a four-chaptered story in my mind, but now I have like, fifteen chapters in my head. D:

And thank you for suscribing, reviewing and favoriting (if that word even exists!) :D


	4. Part Four

**A**uthor's **N**ote: Hey, my dear readers! It's been a long time. Real life update? School has started and has proven itself to be a living hell. Timetables are just impossible this year, and it's kinda difficult to actually sit down and write right now. Still, I wanted to finish this chapter, so here I am! I really hope you like it, and thank you for reviewing and adding this story to your favs (: 'Nameless Blossom' asked me what the quotes at the beginning of each chapter meant, so I should answer, right? Well, they're quotes of both Sasuke and Sakura that they'll say later in the story. Just a hint of what might happen next. There! That's the meaning of the quotes. Thanks for asking, I actually though I had clarified it in some author's note or something.

* * *

"Who are you!" He yelled.

* * *

**Tsubasa  
**_By Ailu Chan_

* * *

She winced. He never yelled. "I don't know."

* * *

**.Part Four.**

Sakura had this strange ability of forgetting (or forgiving) pretty fast, Sasuke realized the following morning.

After their brief exchange the day before, Sakura had used the knives to clean up his wound, poured alcohol into it (and it had hurt like a bitch) and had professionally bandaged it up. She had done it all in a dead silence, a silence she only broke to tell him he would only start taking the antibiotics the following day, since she needed to pick them up from the hospital.

She had never smiled again that night, not even once. He didn't mind, not at all, but the sight was a little different — she did the same things she did every day (reading, cleaning, cooking, gardening and reading once again, perhaps). But instead of that slight curvature on her lips she always wore, there was a furrow on her brows and her eyes were distant, glassy. When she looked at him, her green eyes seem dead.

That morning, however, she was completely different. The shy smile was back on its place once again when he entered the kitchen, and she had made breakfast for him. Sasuke eyed her curiously, trying to decipher whether that smile was fake or not. He couldn't tell — not this time.

"Aren't you going to have breakfast?" he asked. Then, he smelled something unfamiliar. "Is this tea?"

Sakura smiled, "No, and yes, it's tea. Hope you like it, I've never done it before."

"_Have you done this before?"_

Her smile faltered for a second. His eyes flipped to hers.

She tried to smile once again, but her lips wouldn't move, so she just wished he would look away, try her tea and _fuck off_. His eyes were still charming, but how could she be comfortable when he hide everything from her and kept pushing her away? She couldn't stand his gaze anymore, she was sad to admit.

Finally, _finally_, he took a sip. "It's good," he found himself replying. "I thought it was too expensive."

"It is, it is," she smiled, taking the opportunity and looking away, "I've cultivated it, and I've been drying it for two days outside." _Okay now, how come he hadn't noticed that_? "— funny thing you haven't noticed!"

Sasuke frowned in annoyance. This was starting to irritate him.

"What's with that face? Am I annoying you or something?" So now he just wanted to break something in frustration. _How does she do that?!_ He clenched his teeth and glared at her. "Well, if that's the case, you'll just have to deal with it," she grinned.

"It's _nothing_," he cut her off, before she drove him insane. "Did you grow the tomatoes as well?" he asked, recalling how she had told him they were expensive too.

"That's right," she nodded, still grinning.

There was a sliced apple next to his cup of tea, so he took one — he had to take advantage of her peeling and slicing fruit.

"Why don't you ever have breakfast?" he asked after he swallowed. The question had actually been on his mind for some time — he woke up every day at seven in the morning and she would always be already up, preparing his breakfast. Then she would go off to the hospital, leaving lunch in the fridge for him; and wouldn't be back until about three.

"Oh, aren't you talkative today, Sasuke," she chuckled. She turned around and started washing dishes he didn't even know that were there, and he had this feeling she would evade the question, so he insisted.

"I'm just curious,"

He realized he was just being plain stupid, and regretted ever saying those words out loud. He didn't even know what he was doing, and he panicked — just a bit — at this. He felt like he was losing control and was about to bring up his defensive methods, but she spoke first.

"I think we've had this conversation before," she said casually, looking at him in the eyes (which weren't as hard as she thought it would be).

She had seen that look on his face — he had it every time he was about to say something _not nice_ to her. She felt the urge to interrupt before he was able to speak. He could hurt her in the most stupid ways; and she wasn't going to just _let him_.

"I am curious too. We're even, Sasuke."

He almost shivered at her voice. It was so cold — he could've thought _she_ was pushing _him_ away.

* * *

When Sakura entered the cafeteria that day, she truly wished she had at least one friend to talk to. It was one of those days in which she allowed herself to envy her coworkers and their talkative friendships. She made her way to her table — well, it wasn't hers, technically, but no one ever sat there anyways — and started to eat her sandwich slowly.

"You look troubled, Sakura-san," she heard, and looked up. "Is everything okay?"

So it was this new guy again. He was a medic who came from another village and evidently hadn't heard anything about her — yet, at least. She forced a smile up her lips, because he was a medic — with a beautiful diploma from the Kumo University of Medicine, or so she had heard — and she respected medics very much, since they were everything she had ever wanted to be.

"Nothing's wrong, Takashi-san," she said, shaking her head, relieved that she had remembered his name.

"Okay then," he smiled. _He's a good guy,_ Sakura thought. However, he dangerously approached her table, causing her proximity alarm set off. "May I join you?"

"Wha— Um, I'm sorry, I just finished," she replied shyly, blushing when Takashi looked down to her half-eaten sandwich. "—and my shift starts in three minutes anyways, so…" she saw the pained look on his face and smiled. "I'm really sorry, Takashi-san. I really am."

He chuckled and nodded, embarrassed. "Don't worry. Three minutes? You better get going, Sakura-san. Have a nice day!" he waved, as he walked to the other medics.

Sakura stood there a few seconds. That had been the first time someone had wished her a good day in such a long time. Then she walked off, remembering how their conversation had started, and wondering if she actually looked that bad because of it.

Now that she thought about it, she found out she _was_ troubled. She usually felt upset when she argued with other people, but somehow she felt even worse when it came to Sasuke. She had told herself that, in order to maintain the status quo, she shouldn't speak too much about herself and that she should be somewhat mysterious in order to keep Sasuke talking.

She was wrong — as it evidently wasn't working.

A few weeks ago he was just a stranger and he had practically kidnapped her (the fact that she was being kept in her house _didn't count_ at all), but her anger had faded (though she doubted she had ever been angry in the first place, but whatever) and she liked his company. Kind of, that is. It was not like his presence was very noticeable — he barely spoke, and he was so silent.

It was different for her, though. Coming home after work while knowing that someone was inside (he wasn't waiting for her, but still) felt a lot better than entering the house alone and cooking just for herself. Someone was there, and that was all that mattered. And now she wanted to know about him. Everything she could.

Okay, so maybe she was nosy, but she couldn't help it. It was her nature, she told herself. As a matter of fact, Sasuke made her feel so damn _curious_ her heart tingled when she knew he was hiding something. She could make him trust her if she trusted him, right?

It didn't matter — she was going to try anyways. She didn't want to continue like this. As soon as the right moment came, she would tell him everything.

And there was a lot to tell.

* * *

He was bored. Bored to death. He was feeling better but the fever was persistent (annoying him). There was no television (not that he was the kind of guy who just sat and watched TV, but still) and the books Sakura had were incomprehensible for him — so he found himself wandering through the empty house.

He knew he was probably invading Sakura's privacy but he just couldn't help himself. Besides, she did say once that he could explore the house, right? Right.

Of course he didn't actually believe that included searching her wardrobe. Then again, she would never find out, so he shrugged off the thought when he saw a flat wooden box lying right behind a pile of what he supposed were T-shirts (which by the way, were so well-folded and ironed he was actually wondering if she had an obsession with order or something).

He leaned into the wardrobe and cursed Deidara when his wound sent a sharp pang through his spine. He seriously should have evaded that stupid kunai — honestly, who on earth got wounded with a kunai these days?

He carefully grabbed the small package and sat down on her bed. It was black, but it still had those lines that defined it as wood. In the middle there was a white ring, but it wasn't painted — it was white wood that perfectly fitted in. He wondered what it meant, but he was sure he wouldn't find out any time soon, so he opened it.

Inside, there were exactly ten kunai — made of silver.

Sasuke frowned. This was probably a gift for her parents, and he didn't know why she would keep such a (valuable) thing. Now that he thought about it, she should have sold these and go away with the money, he knew she needed it. Above all, he wondered if she had them with her when they first met, because they were heavy enough to cause a headache in a travel on foot to any civilian. Especially with the packaging and all.

His hand moved carefully and grabbed one, and he read the single word engraved on the blade — _Haruno_. It was written in kanji, which meant it was a family name. Sasuke smirked. If that was Sakura's last name, it surely fitted the name he had called her. _Haruno Sakura_. Spring's cherry blossom. And he still couldn't believe her hair.

* * *

Two weeks and a few days later, Suigetsu was back. Sakura still hadn't managed to tell him anything, and the guilt was eating her alive — she was starting to feel uncomfortable around Sasuke. Suigetsu's arrival, however, had somehow eased up her tension. He and Sasuke were talking in the garden, and she was watching them while drying the dishes. She couldn't listen to them, but she was able to see Sasuke's (still beautiful) features tense up and she was afraid his glare would set on fire the grass or something.

Suigetsu's grin had vanished as soon as he had started to talk and she knew whatever it was, it was important. Perhaps they were talking about Uchiha Itachi? Sasuke had said they should look for him, but he had also told her he needed to work on a plan — and he hadn't been able to train much, due to the wound on his side. He was much better though, she would have to completely remove his bandages soon, but he had lost valuable time, that was for sure.

Suddenly, Sasuke looked up at her and she automatically lowered her gaze, realizing she had been staring all along. Then she heard Suigetsu's loud chuckle and a low _thud_, to which she looked up again and saw Suigetsu rubbing the back of his head and glaring at Sasuke, who was already standing and walking towards the door. She chuckled softly.

He entered the kitchen and opened the refrigerator, pouring water in a glass. His aura was dark, she realized. He usually turned like this when she mentioned Itachi — which of course wasn't very often, but sometimes she just wanted him to _talk_ about something. She had quickly realized it didn't work at all — he just turned more silent and more… Dark.

Suigetsu followed him in and Sasuke gave him the glass of water, and then he just started drinking from the bottle. Placing the last plate inside the cupboard at her left, she finally turned to them, and realized they were staring at her intently. Suigetsu, amused: and Sasuke, troubled. Or something like it. She really couldn't tell from his face.

"Is something wrong?" she asked hesitantly.

"Yeah," Suigetsu said, "could you make me some cookies? Sasuke says you're a good cook," he smirked.

"I did _not,_" Sasuke spat, glaring daggers at his subordinate, "Shut up."

Sakura narrowed her eyes. "So I'm _not_ a good cook, huh," she glared at Sasuke.

He glared back. "That's not what I meant," he shook his head slightly. Sakura opened her mouth, smirking. "Drop it," he warned. She pouted and crossed her arms. Suigetsu chuckled and Sasuke suddenly remembered what this was all about. "I'll be away for a couple of days," he told her.

Her eyes widened. She was about to ask what had happened but she knew she wouldn't get a proper answer; so instead she said, "…but you're coming back, right?"

"Hopefully yes," he said coldly.

She bit her lip. Technically, _she_ was the hostage there and he could do whatever he wanted to do, so there wasn't really anything she could say. Let alone argue. "O-okay… Am I supposed to do anything in particular?"

"I'm a terrible cook if you ask me, so you'll have to cook something for me! We'll have so much fun, Sakura-chan!"

_Wh-what? Sakura-chan?_ She faced Suigetsu and stared at him incredulous, her lips slightly parted. The only person alive who called her that was the shop keeper.

"You don't have to do anything," Sasuke continued, ignoring Suigetsu's comment. "Suigetsu is staying with you for safety purposes."

She looked back at Sasuke completely taken aback. So this man was staying with her? Well, she surely got on better with him than with Karin, but still! How could Sasuke do this to her? He knew about her insecurities and yet he shoved a stranger into her house.

"…safety purposes?" she cursed inwardly at the slight anger that filtered into her voice.

"Yes. You're…" He paused. "Useful. Suigetsu should be able to protect you."

Useful? So that's what he thought of her. He was so weird and bizarre — one moment she'd think he cared for her, and the other it seemed he didn't care at all. Weird, and just a little painful.

Sakura kept silent, as she had nothing else (nothing useful) to say. "I'll take care of you, Sakura-chan, don't worry," Suigetsu grinned mischievously. She smiled weakly.

"When are you leaving?" she found the strength to speak once again.

"In a few minutes." He surprised her yet again.

Sasuke looked at her. The way she was biting her lips, searching with her eyes for some distraction that would keep her away from thinking. She probably wanted to know what he was going to do, because he knew she cared. "If you want to know something then ask," he said bluntly. Suigetsu gaped.

She gaped too, looking at him. His eyes wouldn't meet hers — again. "I was wondering what was going on… But it's okay — it's none of my business."

The shark-teeth boy closed his mouth and kept wisely silent, waiting for Sasuke's response, his eyes narrowed. Then Sasuke spoke. "There are rumors in a nearby village that say Itachi has been sighted. The bartender that probably served him doesn't want to talk, probably because of Itachi's…" He narrowed his eyes. She had seen his eyes, he remembered. He quickly came up with a lie. "…eyes. None has been able to make him talk, so I have to go and use a jutsu on him."

Sakura narrowed her eyes. Perhaps she was a bad liar, but she could surely tell when someone was lying; and she quickly related Itachi's eyes with Sasuke's that night. He was the one who urged her to ask what was going on, why was he lying to her? It made no sense. She played fool, of course.

Suigetsu opened his mouth to point out the inaccuracy of what he had said but he quickly understood. This girl didn't know the whole story and Sasuke wanted him to know in order not to screw it up.

"I see," she said, disappointed. She thought he trusted her. "Do you trust me, Sasuke?" she blurted out, before she could help herself. She made a mental note to work on that later — she wasn't sure she wanted to know that just yet. Then again, it was probably for the best. She needed to know where she was standing anyways, right?

"No," he said casually.

Well, that could surely explain a lot of things.

* * *

Knowing that he didn't trust her devastated her. She wasn't crying, she barely cried by now, but she felt a knot in her throat and her chest felt heavier than usual. His departure that afternoon eased her a little, and gave her time to think. She didn't know what she had been expecting, _of course he didn't trust her_, and that was why she wanted to tell him more about herself in the first place! She regretted asking him — that ill feeling in her stomach was completely unfounded and made no sense at all. She felt stupid.

She was absently sweeping the kitchen — she seemed to spend a lot of time there — when Suigetsu appeared by the door.

"Don't worry," he said, smiling, pulling up a chair and sitting comfortably. "He doesn't trust anyone. Not even us, probably."

Sakura smiled, and shook her head softly. She was probably looking troubled again, she thought. "Don't say that. He entrusted you with the searching of Uchiha Itachi, after all. It seems very important to him."

Suigetsu chuckled. "Yeah, I guess, but how can you tell? You don't really know him. Neither do I, nor does any on our team, for that matter. Naruto was the one who knew him well."

"Naruto?" Sakura asked, interested.

"Of course he didn't tell you," he said, amused. Sakura narrowed her eyes. "Naruto was in his team, and their sensei was Hatake Kakashi, the copy ninja."

"Never heard of him," Sakura shrugged.

Suigetsu widened his eyes and paused. Then he shook his head, chuckling again. "Right — small town," he said, apologetically. "Everyone knows Hatake Kakashi. He killed my sensei."

"Really? That's awful. I'm sorry."

"Don't be. Actually, my sensei was evil," Suigetsu said, remembering Zabuza. Sakura stared, bewildered, and at a loss of words. "Anyways, we'll never get to know him as he really is."

"That must be sad," she said. Teammates usually care for each other.

"Nah, he's just a little brat. We're only with him 'cause he's freed us in some way — well, except from Karin. She probably would follow him no matter what — that whore."

_Little brat?_ She wondered, staring; but nodded nevertheless. Suigetsu started chuckling.

"You know, when he recruited us, a few months ago; Karin practically tried to rape him," and he continued giggling to himself.

Sakura's heart skipped a beat. "What do you mean…?"

Suigetsu's eyes widened a little. So she didn't know. Dammit, he had just screw up. "Is that an apple tree? The fruit looks delicious," he said, stupidly; giving her a perfect opportunity to play dumb.

The girl wondered for a few seconds if this was one of those things it was better to don't know about. Then she decided that no, she needed to know. She needed to know how many lies Sasuke had told her. Of course she understood there were things Sasuke wasn't about to tell her, things Sasuke was resolute to hide from her, things Sasuke wouldn't doubt in lying about — she understood indeed. But that didn't make it any less painful, and she wasn't going to come to terms with it just like that.

"Suigetsu… Sasuke told me he was seventeen. Is that a lie?"

A straight question, she would be able to see clearly whether or not Suigetsu was lying to her. She was tired of being lied to.

Suigetsu glared fiercely, trying to intimidate her and perhaps she would drop the topic if she was scared enough. She didn't step back, instead she stepped forward and crossed her arms. She wished she had something to threaten him with, because he could overpower her in a matter of seconds, but he was sitting still in his chair — he probably wasn't allowed to lie a finger on her. She took advantage of that. "Is that a lie?" she gritted her teeth.

"Tsk," he looked away. "He's fifteen. You didn't hear it from me, understood? No one knows."

"How do _you_ know?" she asked.

Ha. Smart girl. Suigetsu smirked. "Because I know Itachi's age and I also know he's five years older than Sasuke."

Sakura raised a brow. "Interesting." She didn't know how Suigetsu knew that, and she didn't knew how Itachi's age was related to Sasuke's either, but she did know Sasuke was going _down_. He was going to pay for every single lie he had told her — she didn't care about what she had lied about anymore. "So all of you are older than him."

Suigetsu shrugged. "Yeah, I guess. Age is not important within shinobi, though — he's the most powerful among us. It's still embarrassing, I might add," he chuckled, in spite of himself. "In actuality, we're older but just by a matter of months. Juugo is eighteen, though. We tend to lie about it, so as to say we're legal, you know. We avoid trouble, since Sasuke doesn't want to attract attention."

"Legal?" Sakura laughed.

"Yeah, I know how that sounds," Suigetsu chuckled again.

The oven's alarm clock went off. Sakura smiled. "Cookies?" Perhaps the fact that he lied to everyone made her feel better. As messed up as that may sound.

* * *

"I can't undo the jutsu," Sasuke said, his teeth gritted.

"Your brother is very skilled. I wouldn't have noticed if I didn't know," Karin said, crossing her arms, trying to ease Sasuke's mood.

Every single time he thought he was close, that he would find him and finally kill him, Itachi was prepared and surprised him with a messed up way of telling him he was still ahead of him. It was getting under his skin. Red eyes glared at Karin, and she immediately shut up.

Juugo was different — he didn't fear his eyes, perhaps because the Sharingan was the only thing that kept him sane when he'd thought he'd lose it; so he wasn't afraid of talking to him. "We still know he was around here," he added. "At least we can narrow the search area."

Sasuke considered it for a moment. In any other situation, he'd think this was more than likely a trap, but this time Itachi didn't know where he was. He had kept a low profile for the last month, had given no sign of existence in the world. He hadn't left Sakura's house until that very moment. He was sure — there was no way Itachi knew where he was, if he was following or not, that shouldn't be a trap.

He glared once more at the man sitting in the only chair there was in the hotel room, though he wasn't really mad at him. If only his eyes were a little more powerful, he could have access to whatever information Itachi considered important enough to erase from that man's memory.

Damn the world.

He stared, paying attention at the wounds and bruises the man had, probably due to his team's beating. He hadn't told them they could just go and beat anyone who got in their way — okay, maybe he had, but still. "Karin, heal this man,"

Karin opened her mouth. Then closed it. And then she said, "But — hell no," She wasn't going to let him suck her blood.

"You don't have to give him your blood. Find a way. Find a medic—" a sudden picture of Sakura flooded his mind. "—Just heal him, understood?"

The redhead narrowed her eyes and nodded.

* * *

Two weeks later, Sakura sent Sasuke to the grocery.

He had scowled at her, then glared, then crossed his arms. She forced back the laughter. "Really? That's all you got? People just give in to you just because of that face?" And she couldn't resist it anymore, so she laughed. "C'mon. I've even made you a list!" She grinned, pointing at the little piece of paper lying in the kitchen table. "I'm making cupcakes and I can't trust you to know when they're ready."

Sasuke glared harder. He didn't like going out. "Fine," he spat. Sakura giggled. "And stop your stupid laughter," But she went on, so he left, snatching the small paper from the table.

When the door closed loudly, Sakura sighed.

So this was the day. She had about fifteen minutes; perhaps half an hour; to think what she would do to let Sasuke know she had lied to him as well. She really hoped he wouldn't get _that_ mad at her, it wasn't so bad after all. She didn't even know why she kept it a secret, but then again, she didn't know why he had kept such things as his age a secret either.

Perhaps she could just let him see her chopping vegetables with a knife, she was sure he would be able to differentiate someone who has trained with knifes from normal people. She wanted it to look as an accident, or perhaps not? If it appeared to be an accident, then she couldn't argue that he had lied to her, because she would have had no intention to reveal her own lies to him. But if she just sat him on the couch and told him, or deliberately showed just one of her skills to him, then he would have to accept she wanted to tell him.

Still, she didn't quite believe she'd be really able to tell him, to spoke her mind openly to him just like that about something so serious, something she had never talked about to anyone. Maybe she could just flare a little of her (oh so tiny) chakra, and she was sure he would notice right then, without further explanation, but she feared his reaction. What if he felt threatened and left? No, he could never feel threatened by her, but what if he thought she was spy of Uchiha Itachi? She had told him she had met him once, it could be easily misunderstood.

Sakura bit her lip. It didn't matter — she had lied and now she should face the consequences. Just like Sasuke would, when she told him she knew.

Checking the oven once again, Sakura decided that the flare of chakra was the best choice. She could be standing, defenseless, and he could be near, and he'd feel it right away — but he wouldn't think she was a threat or something. It was just chakra, and she really hoped he'd catch the message. Smiling a little, she also decided the cupcakes were finally ready.

When Sasuke finally opened the door, Sakura felt like hyperventilating. Her hands were sweating. He had taken more time than she had expected him to, but she was glad. Lunch was already on the table so they just needed to sit down and eat it. She looked at him. Expressionless. She wondered if he ever smiled. If there was a time in which he smiled every now and then. The pinkette bit her lip once again, because this could go well, or terribly wrong. Uncertainty was killing her, so it was better to end with it quickly.

Sasuke nodded towards her, it was his way of thanking her for the meal, as he sat down on his place at the table. He noticed how nervous she was, and he wondered if she had tried something new with the food, or something. Sakura always worried about those things. She turned to the refrigerator to grab a bottle of water, and just when the bottom hit the table, a flare of chakra filled the room.


	5. Part Five

**A**uthor's** N**otes: Once, while reading a fic (don't really remember which one exactly), the author said she (let's just assume it, Sasusaku fans are female in the most of cases) liked author's notes because it made the screen seem less empty when starting to write a new chapter. I particularly remember her chapters being quite long. So let me tell you, she was right! Having a little text above the page makes me feel like I've actually written something. Which is quite pathetic. Lol.

Anyways! Major plot developments in this chapter. You deserved it, guys — since I've been taking such a long time for each update. I really hope you like this twist in the story, and I'd love to hear what you think about it, as always. Thanks for reading!

* * *

She had told him she loved him. He sighed. "I know."

* * *

**Tsubasa**  
By Ailu-Chan

* * *

"Then say something, coward!"

* * *

**.Part Five.**

"I have to say," Sasuke said, raising his brows and suppressing a smirk, "that's pretty pathetic."

Sakura glared pointedly and then sighed. She looked once more at the tree she was aiming at, hoping she'd see the kunai rooted into its wood, but it was still on the ground. Yeah, pathetic would really sum it up.

"I haven't done this for a year and a half, okay? Leave me alone," she managed to excuse herself.

"Hn, that is not even an excuse." He said, matter-of-factly. "Again," he ordered. "And use your arm this time, woman."

* * *

Two weeks before…

Sakura hadn't even had time to see him move. One moment he was there, staring at her like she was some kind of dirty liar, then she blinked, and in the next second he was tackling her — her back crashing with the kitchen wall, his hard grip on her neck.

When he blinked, she managed to see in the dim light of the kitchen how his eyes turned into crimson red. Three tomoes were glaring at her, and she instantly knew those eyes were way more powerful than what she would have ever imagined when she saw them for the first time. She also realized he was being rather merciful with her, for he could have just killed her that very moment — and now that she thought about it, he should have. She would have, if she had been him. Thus she allowed her mind to have a little hope. Perhaps he could forgive her.

"Who are you!" he yelled. He seemed troubled and confused, perhaps hurt — but not necessarily angry, right?

She winced. He never yelled, though. Okay, she had heard him yell at Suigetsu when he got insufferable, but still. He never yelled at her. And she would have really liked to answer, were it not for his hands at her throat. She knew her face was probably red, but that wasn't the first of her concerns — she couldn't breathe and god if she didn't get just a little breath of air she was going to faint. Just when the borders of her sight started to blacken, he suddenly released her, letting her fall to the kitchen floor.

She coughed until she was able to breathe properly again, which took her a good, long fifteen seconds. Looking up to his red eyes, she answered weakly, "I don't know."

"Bullshit." He spat, his tomoes swirling dangerously. "I should kill you right now, so you better start talking, _Sakura_."

Sakura didn't like at all the way he said her name. As a matter of fact, she felt a pang in her chest, which of course she wasn't near to admitting. Her name, being uttered by _him_, with such hatred… She felt like retorting something back, something as painful to him as it was to her. However, he spoke first.

"Are you working with Itachi?"

"What? No!" she exclaimed. So she might have lied to him, but she was sure as hell she would never work with an Akatsuki. Actually, she was somewhat surprised he was even considering that possibility.

Sasuke didn't really believe she could work with Akatsuki. Then again, he hadn't believed she could be a kunoichi either, so he should be thorough — hence his question. He frowned. How could he know whether or not she was lying to him anymore? He wasn't sure (though he subconsciously assumed she was telling him the truth when she said she wasn't working for Itachi). He'd been blatantly fooled by this girl, and it was really irritating. He felt like he'd been a complete, utter asshole; and he could almost imagine her chuckling at his back.

Really. He seriously needed something to burn right then.

And apart from that, this was dangerous. If she'd lied to him with this — and do not tell him it is not big deal, for he could just tear you apart — what else had she lied to him about? For all he knew, she could well be a spy from Konoha. A plan from the dobe to bring him back — a thing he was not about to do, at least until he was done with Itachi. Or even worse, what if it was a spy from Kabuto, trying to take revenge for his dead master? Damn, he knew he should have killed that bastard when he got the chance.

Surprisingly, realization drowned into him: he didn't think Sakura could possibly be a threat. His mind had automatically started to wonder who might have been behind all this. What was happening to him? Why was she still alive, more importantly? He was terrified to notice that he couldn't bring himself to kill her. Had it been someone else, he was positive that someone would be already dead by then.

When his eyes came to focus again, back to reality; he saw Sakura was standing in front of him now. Her eyes glowed with fear, and his hands were red in her neck. He watched her swallow in slow motion.

"Listen Sasuke, I'm really sorry — I should have told you before,"

_You think?_ He thought sarcastically. He slapped himself in his mind.

Her voice was raspy. She swallowed painfully once more. "I know what you're thinking," she said.

Oh, please, not again.

She gathered strength to speak, breathing as much air as her lungs allowed her. In actuality, she was wondering how she managed to look at him in the eye by then. She was so ashamed of herself.

"You're assuming I'm a kunoichi, aren't you?"

A few seconds passed by until Sasuke realized her question wasn't rhetorical. "Are you not?"

Sakura admired the ability of the man before her to calm himself down. To gather his emotions and locked them up in the back of his mind. For one second, she had actually thought she was going to be killed right there and right then, but then he had regained control of himself until his eyes didn't seemed that murderous. And now they were having a rational conversation. She was relieved.

It was certainly a lot more than what she could manage to do when he asked her what she had done to the villagers.

"No, I'm not. I've been trained, that's true. But just for two years, and I don't even have a headband—"

"You don't need a headband to be a shinobi," he replied, narrowing his eyes.

Huh. Naruto would have loved to hear him say that. He suppressed a smirk. Why was he being rational with this girl again? He told himself that he was angry at her, and forced his eyebrows to frown.

"You don't? Really?" she asked. She then quickly realized she was beating around the bush. She shook her head. "That's not the point."

"Then what is the point?"

"That I've been roughly trained and that is all."

"Define rough training."

"Basic chakra control, little physical resistance and very, _very_ basic weapon wielding." She found herself numbering. Sasuke didn't respond anything, so she went on. "I should have told you before. I'm sorry. I just thought you should know."

Wasn't he going to state that she had lied to him and that for that she was in debt with him? Because she really needed him to say something of the sort.

"I see." He said, almost like a whisper. "I might forgive you, but you still lied to me."

There. She suppressed a smirk. Was she really that much of a manipulative bitch?

"Oh, Sasuke. You lied to me too, didn't you know that?" she commented casually.

"Elaborate," he frowned, crossing his arms.

"_God_, you really need to stop using that word," Sakura smiled. She would have giggled, but it would have ruined the scene. "Now tell me, how old are you, Sasuke?"

He was going to murder Suigetsu. That loud-mouthed stupid moron. Against his will, his eyes betrayed him and widened a little, though luckily, he immediately took over and recovered his blank expression. Sakura was evidently not buying it, so he sighed. "You do know you've just practically murdered Suigetsu,"

Sakura laughed. "I was going to find out eventually," she said calmly, with a peaceful smile in her lips. She looked like she'd been taken a heavy load off her shoulders. "Just like you find out of me."

"You must not tell anyone."

"I understand. Suigetsu explained."

That fool. He was never leaving him with Sakura ever again.

After a few seconds of silence, she found herself staring at his eyes. That strange jutsu she _had_ seen before captivated her. She realized, as she slowly blinked to see whether or not she was dreaming, that he'd activated it accidentally, and that he hadn't noticed just yet. Crimson red, three tomoes staring back at her. She wondered what exactly those eyes capable were of. She swallowed.

"…your eyes…"

She regretted having mentioned it, as they instantly faded into obsidian black. It was a morning of developments, she reasoned, and she was tired of playing fool.

"It's a kekkei-genkai, isn't it?" Sasuke tensed. She didn't know why, he should know she knew by now. "You and Itachi are related."

He wasn't sure he wanted to tell her about it just yet. As a matter of fact, he realized he didn't want to tell anyone in the first place — people just found out, because he was an Uchiha, and the last of his kind. Sakura had been isolated all her life, and that's probably why she didn't know. Still, he wasn't prepared. No — he was prepared, he just didn't want to.

"I'm not asking you to tell me all about it," she said, though her voice leaked her eagerness for knowledge on him. "I just wanna make sure you know I'm not stupid, and I can notice such things." So that might have sounded a bit lame, but it was all she could think of. The day before she had realized she came up with better answers to Sasuke's retorts or reactions a couple of minutes _after_ they've had the actual conversation. It was a bit frustrating — not being able to say what you really think because you can't think of the right words, or the right way to put it.

She still loved his eyes, though — and the way they faded between red and black (such a dark black) just captivated her.

To her surprise, Sasuke nodded in agreement. A light of hope lit in her heart. Perhaps she'd see the day in which she'd tell her after all. She smiled weakly. She was glad.

Sakura coughed then, a pretty rough cough. Sasuke's eyes narrowed when he figured it had something to do with those red finger-marks in her throat. He didn't miss how she kept a safe distance (how she purposefully stepped away when approaching him) when she went for a glass of water.

His eyes narrowed as an idea curled up in his mind — an idea he didn't like at all. Then again, it seemed what he liked or not, what was right or wrong, didn't really matter at all when it came to her. And he didn't like that.

Oh, the irony.

"Show me your chakra," he said suddenly. Sasuke officially hated the way his mouth seemed to speak without his permission. He was going to seriously think about these late events later.

Curiosity. It would kill him one of these days. Really now, he should keep his mouth shut.

But he had said it, asked for it, and Sakura choked on her water. "Sorry, wh-what?" she stuttered. "I mean, it's dangerous-"

"I know that," _Probably even better than you'll ever do_. "Just do it, don't worry about that."

And again, Sasuke was being plain stupid. Okay, perhaps the possibilities of a shinobi's passing by just when Sakura or he released chakra where minimal — but then again, was Uchiha Sasuke the kind of guy who took chances? The answer is definitely no.

"Are you sure?"

He thought about it. Twice. He was glad Sakura kept his curiosity at bay, otherwise— No, wait, it was her in the first place who fed his interest.

"Fine, release half of it. I want to measure it."

_I want to have an idea of what you could do._

Sakura still wasn't sure about it, but who was she to judge? She'd only been trained for three years and a half. Sasuke, instead, had been trained all his life. In the worst of cases, they'd die — and no, she didn't want to die, but she had nothing to lose, and she was pretty sure no one would care that much if she passed away, so she didn't really have much trouble about that.

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

Sasuke had no reason to die — and what he was suggesting was plain stupid and dangerous. Although he had not said so, she knew he wouldn't allow himself to die until he killed Uchiha Itachi. This request wasn't Sasuke-like, and she was astonished to realize he wasn't considering the consequences of his actions. She felt something warm inside her chest. He wasn't as perfect as he looked.

"No, Sasuke. It's dangerous. End of discussion."

But she said so grinning like an idiot.

* * *

A week later, Sakura told him she wanted to learn.

Sasuke stared at her green eyes, shining with emotion. "No," he said blankly.

Her expression fell. "Please," she said. "You can do it. We don't need to use chakra — just weapon wielding and I really need to be faster—"

After a few hours when he first told her to release her chakra, he had fully realized he was being a very stupid moron; so he had never suggested it again, nor had he spoken about the mere idea of doing so. In actuality, her having training (as slight and deficient as it was) was troublesome. She understood what he was talking about when he spoke with his teammates. She had ascended to a whole new level — and had he known this when he met her, he wouldn't have even thought about moving in with her in the first place.

"You're annoying," he said, glaring at her profoundly, speaking his heart.

She fell silent, shook her head and pretended not to have listened to him — pretended not to have felt pain at his words. "Just tell my why won't you teach me! I'm not asking for much. Please, Sasuke. All you have to do is watch me, tell me what I'm doing wrong, show me how to do it right and let me practice."

_I could be able to be someone with this. _Sakura didn't know why she was still insisting. Sasuke never changed his mind; she had already made sure of that. The idea made her eyes burn. She had the opportunity right in front of her, but she wasn't going to take it because he didn't want to. How she wished she hadn't known him. That way, she would have never even had the hope — and of course, it wouldn't hurt that way.

Sakura breathed in, trying to calm herself. She didn't want to look desperate, at least not in front of him, so she held back the tears. _Please, give me a way to get myself out of here._ "Please." She said, her head low.

"Annoying," Sasuke muttered. "Fine."

She snapped her head up, surprised. Tears were now rolling down her cheeks, and she cursed inwardly — she was crying in front of him yet again. "Really? I'm sorry—" she said, wiping her cheeks with the back of her hand, "I mean, thank you, Sasuke." She smiled in spite of herself.

He wasn't an ice cube.

He was Sasuke.

Cool on the outside, harsh in his words, easy glarer.

Warm in the inside. So warm.

So beautiful.

She liked him.

* * *

Suigetsu felt uncomfortable in this henge jutsu, especially if you considered Karin being right beside him, playing the role of his girlfriend. Juugo had tricked him into this. He gritted his teeth. _Juugo! Seriously, dude!_ He still couldn't believe it. Now he had to stand the hormonal sixteen-year-old all on his own.

As they entered an inn they hadn't visited before — Karin's hair was now blonde, her eyes blue; and his teeth were normal for once, his hair brown —, they greeted the manager as they sat down on one of the benches nearby.

"A shot, man," he said, tired. He'd been walking for hours, and he was dehydrated.

"Of what?" the barman asked amiably.

"You choose," Suigetsu grinned.

The vodka felt good and burning against his throat. When Karin sat next to him, they started their performance.

"I wonder where he is, nee-chan," Suigetsu said mockingly. "He shouldn't have got mad at this stupidity."

Karin glared. _Nee-chan? He's got to be kidding me._ "I don't know," she said, her portrayal a bit stressed for a few seconds until she perfectly masked her annoyance. He was enjoying this. She was going to murder him. _Bastard._ "But I think he has reasons — I mean, being cheated? It's a pretty big deal," she spat out, a little uncomfortable with the answer she had just come up with. Still, improvisation was fun.

"Oh come on," he said, satisfied with the fact the barman was secretly paying attention to them. "They were married for just four months. Perhaps the marriage didn't work out," he suggested, amused.

"They've been dating for two years before they got married!" Karin exclaimed, feigning indignation. "They should have known it before, if that's the case, shouldn't them?" she sipped slowly out of her glass.

"Living together is not that easy, nee-chan. I can tell," he said, smirking.

_Dickhead_. "How so? I actually thought they got on pretty well."

Suigetsu swallowed. Then he smirked again. "Oh, you know Sakura-chan. She gets difficult sometimes," and grinned like an idiot. _Touché._ He was laughing out loud in his insides.

Karin felt like releasing her chakra in anger. She managed to calm though and decided to drop the matter for some later discussing. _He's so gonna die today._ "Don't you tell me," she muttered, looking away, pretending to be ashamed. "Do you think we'll catch him by tomorrow? I'm really tired of travelling. I just wanna go home—"

"Excuse me, I couldn't help but to listen to your conversation. Were you looking for someone?"

_Bingo._

Karin and Suigetsu immediately focused on the barman. Karin looked doubtfully at Suigetsu, acting as if she was asking for permission for telling him. The barman eyed the both of them. After a well-counted three seconds, Karin turned to the barman. She smiled sadly, grinning in her insides. "Unfortunately, yes."

The man sat in front of them and frowned, interested in their story. "You see, my sister's husband left her because she cheated on him. He might have the right to do so, but…" Thank god she had learned to cry on demand. "But my nee-chan… She's pregnant!"

Suigetsu looked down. "We've got to find him. My sister won't be able to do it alone! It's _his_ baby, after all."

"But you said she cheated on him," the barman pointed out.

Karin nodded and looked away. _So she has talent_, Suigetsu thought. "Yeah… But the baby is his. We're sure."

"…I see," he said, sounding a little unconvinced. "So you're coming here because a lot of people tend to make their stops here, am I right?"

"That's correct," Suigetsu said. "We were hoping you could help us if we gave you a description. My brother-in-law… He hardly goes unnoticed."

She nodded energetically. "Yes! He's tall, black eyes, long black hair — he usually ties it down his back—" _…and he's so hot he could set a forest on fire._

The barman widened his eyes. Suigetsu lifted a brow. "Have you seen him?" He asked curtly, trying to hide his enthusiasm.

"Oh god, yes, yes! And actually, I have something for you! Please, wait here," and he rushed to the kitchen, leaving Karin and Suigetsu exchanging glances at each other — worried for a second at the possibility of Itachi being back there and the barman going to alert him. They calmed down when the man appeared through the same door he had gone. "He's been here a few days ago. He said that if someone was looking for him, specifically giving his description, I should give whoever that was _this_—" and he handed a little piece of paper, perfectly cropped, with aristocratical handwriting on it. "_For Sasuke_. " It was folded in the middle, and sealed with some kind of glue on its borders.

They widened their eyes. Karin was the first to react. "Oh my god, this is…" and she faked knowing that handwriting, and that name. "Gosh, thank you so much! This might actually help us find him!" Karin had said what it appeared to be the first handful of truthful words that afternoon.

"Thank you," Suigetsu followed. "We should leave now nee-chan."

"No problem," the man said. "Be careful and good luck!"

* * *

When they met Juugo the day after, he told them he had a few witnesses who claimed having seen Itachi pass by their towns. "This sucks," Suigetsu sighed. "The bastard is dominating the situation. If he didn't want to be found, he could have just used a henge or whatever."

"Suigetsu is right," Juugo commented, lighting a fire — the night would soon fall over them. "He's letting people see him because he knows we're searching for him. He wants to be found. I don't know if that's good or not, though," he sighed.

"Which means," Karin added, pushing her glasses higher up the bridge of her nose, "We've gotta go see Sasuke."

Suigetsu made a face.

"Of course you'd want to see Sasuke, you little—"

"Have you forgotten the letter?" Karin cut him off, glaring at him. "It says _'for Sasuke'_. I really doubt he'd want us to open it, am I right, Juugo?"

"Yes," he admitted. "We should see Sasuke."

* * *

Sasuke's team — Hebi, yes, Hebi's arrival always caught Sakura off-guard.

She had gone off jogging, as Sasuke had suggested her. He had said something about enhancing her cardiovascular capabilities — but she knew all that. When they first met, Sasuke had run with her on his back all night, and didn't seem tired at all. She was far from that. She needed to do something about it, so that morning she left Sasuke in charge of the house and left.

After four hours of running (regular stops in the middle), she came back, tired. There was a continuous pain on her left leg — she had run into something she didn't see and cut her leg with a glass there was in the ground when she fell. _I feel like such a kunoichi._ So there was dried blood all over her leg, and she was being careful not to mess with the carpet, when she tried to enter the kitchen and bumped into something.

Scratch that — someone.

She was already blushing when she thought it was probably Sasuke, but Sasuke didn't chuckle like that. She looked up only to find Suigetsu staring down at her with a knowing smirk. Sakura smiled, because there wasn't much she could do. "Konnichiwa, Suigetsu," she said. "You're briefing Sasuke, right?" He nodded and stepped to a side, letting her inside the kitchen.

As she entered the kitchen — still careful to not stain anything with her dried blood —, she was surprised to see all Hebi was in there. Her eyes widened, and she looked for Sasuke, as it was the only person she was familiar with in the room. Perhaps Suigetsu too but she was more accustomed to Sasuke. As her eyes wandered about the room she saw Karin comfortably sitting on one of her chairs, Juugo leaning on a wall and Suigetsu making himself comfortable on another chair. She finally eyed Sasuke, and he shrugged (ever so slightly), his way of saying sorry.

She wasn't expecting this — and to be honest, Sakura didn't like surprises —, but she wasn't going to be rude and just leave. Besides, it was her house, so yeah. She forced her lips into a smile (something she believed could do very well) and said, "Do you want something to drink? I have tea and coffee."

"I'd like some tea," Sasuke smirked.

Sakura glared and gritted her teeth. "Okay, Sasuke wants tea. Anyone else?"

"Me, if you please," Juugo said, politely as always.

"Me too, Sakura-chan," Suigetsu grinned. Sakura smiled.

"Karin-san?" the pinkette asked.

"I actually wanted some coffee, but whatever, tea's fine—"

"…okay."

Sakura would have loved to ignore her guests and have a shower. She was tired and she could swear she smelled, and she just wasn't used to that. Instead, she decided to stay and make tea for them. Because really? It was obvious Sasuke wasn't going to; and Karin, Suigetsu and Juugo surely felt worse than her. It was silent around her, and she had the feeling it was because they were waiting for her to prepare the tea and leave. Of course she'd leave. It wasn't like Sasuke would let her know what it was all about, anyways.

She felt her heart tingle when Sasuke spoke, much to her surprise.

"So," he said, his voice silky as ever, "what brings the _three_ of you here?"

As much as she wanted to stay and listen, the rational part of her mind started screaming at her. She quickly discovered that she didn't know if she was really prepared — if she wanted to know about Sasuke's doings, what this Uchiha Itachi thing was all about. His red eyes, his resemblance to Itachi. She liked it as it was — and then it hit her: she was afraid.

Sakura then found out, it wasn't her rational self who was yelling at her — it was her emotional side. She was surprised to realize she had actually mistaken them.

Before she could grasp her thoughts, her body and her mouth reacted instead. She turned to her guests and her gaze fell hesitantly on Sasuke. "I — I'll be upstairs," she mumbled, and felt everyone's silent eyes on her, as they all probably thought she should leave before talking.

Sakura was already walking towards the stairs. "You can stay," Sasuke spoke, straightening himself from the wall he was leaning on and pulling up a chair. "At least finish the tea."

Sakura grinned. She would stay, because he'd asked her to.

She walked graciously and started serving the tea on five little cups, dropping a sugar cube into four of them. Sasuke didn't like sweets.

Suigetsu frowned slightly, but remained silent. Karin was not okay with this, though. This was crucial information, and this brat was just a civilian. "But Sasuke—" And he glared, and she closed her mouth, gritting her teeth in frustration. _Who was this girl again?_ Sasuke was being irrational since he met her.

Juugo decided to go straight to the point. He leaned on the table, his elbows on its wooden surface and his eyes staring directly into Sasuke's. "You have asked us to track down Uchiha Itachi," and he didn't have any trouble in speaking firmly, not hesitating when it came to names or details because of the presence of Sakura, because Sasuke had let her hear and he trusted Sasuke. He nodded. "And we have done so. Still, you do know he is manipulating us, right?"

Sakura suppressed a shiver and caught a glimpse of Sasuke's shoulders getting rigid. He immediately relaxed. "That's very likely," he agreed, his voice cold. Even colder than when he had threatened her. "If he doesn't want to be found, I'm sure we won't find him. All clues we may find were probably left on purpose. What's your point?"

So it was very clear Sasuke didn't like that very much, Sakura could tell.

"I just wanted to make that clear," Juugo excused himself.

The room felt silent again and Sakura felt awkward, especially considering the little noise her serving tea was producing. She finally finished, and set a cup in front of each of her guests. She took her cup with her and stayed in one of the corners of the kitchen, next to the window. It was sunny outside, and if it weren't for the orange curtains, the bright sunlight would blind them. When she saw her apple tree, she wondered if she should offer them something to eat. She was about to open her mouth, but she was sure as hell she wasn't going to break that dreadful silence. She bit her lip. Her leg was starting to get a little annoying.

"That isn't why you're here," Sasuke said, already turning impatient. "Speak up,"

A brief silence. Suigetsu sighed. "Itachi's done something… Unexpected."

She wasn't staring out of the window anymore. She saw how Sasuke's shoulders tensed again and how his brows went up, then down in a frown. "Elaborate." She almost chuckled at the word but regained control of herself just in time.

Karin searched her backpack and with her lips pressed, she pulled out a piece of paper. Only when she handed it to Sasuke, Sakura could make out it actually resembled an envelope. She felt the urge to come close and have a better look, but she restrained her legs and stayed right at her spot.

Sasuke visibly paled. His name was written on this paper, and he clearly remembered Itachi's perfect handwriting. He was reminded of when he had teased his older brother, because their handwritings were similar. Their mother, Mikoto, had used the same exercises on both of them. An Uchiha with bad handwriting? It didn't even exist. Not that any Uchiha existed by now, of course. Except himself. And _him._

_For Sasuke._

Had he been alone, he would have considered opening or not. He was doubting. But his team and Sakura were observing him, staring at him, and he couldn't show any signs of hesitation, so he opened it with tremulous (he couldn't help it, and it irritated him) hands.

It hurt his eyes to see so much _Itachi_ on just one little piece of paper. He started to read.

_Dear foolish little brother,_

He stopped, closed his eyes and gritted his teeth. He took a second, just one second, and continued reading. When he finished, he leaned his elbows on the table, and threw the paper towards Suigetsu. Suigetsu read it, then Karin, and then Juugo.

Sakura was exasperated by now. They faces were serious now, and they all glanced at each other. Weren't they going to read the letter aloud? _Of course not_, she answered herself. They remained silent for a long while, and Sakura couldn't tell whether it had been one minute or five. "More tea, anyone?" she said stupidly. She bit her tongue. _Wrong moment for speaking_, her inner self told her.

However, Suigetsu raised his cup. She approached him and took his cup, her face blushed, and he smiled a little at her. She felt a bit better. Sakura filled Suigetsu's cup again, checking the tea was still hot enough, and returned it to him.

After a few seconds, Karin spoke. "So what do we do?"

"He's given us time. I suggest we train and be prepared for this," Juugo said, his eyes intelligent and focused.

"It doesn't matter what we think," Suigetsu said. "Sasuke decides. The time limit is reasonable, but if Sasuke isn't okay with it, then—"

"You do realize I'm in front of you, Suigetsu," he said, frowning. Suigetsu glared and crossed his arms. "But both of you are right, time always comes handy. However, I'm facing Itachi alone," he muttered and his expression turned dark. Sakura wish she knew what they were talking about.

This was an important development - that much she had already figured out. Sasuke was talking about facing Itachi, which had been his primary ambition from the beginning — that had been the reason he had come to her. Perhaps he was leaving soon. She felt like throwing up. It had only been three months. He couldn't leave this soon, could he?

"So there's no need for you to prepare for anything."

"I disagree," Karin intervened, her face sharp. Sakura admired her at this particular moment. The noisy girl she had been introduced to was now contemplative and popping up with sober comments. "Itachi is expecting you to come with us, so he's probably taking Kisame with him."

"Which, by the way, is the first reason _I_ joined you," Suigetsu added.

"You're not going alone, and that is that," Juugo told him, severely.

Sasuke sighed. _"Fine,"_ he dragged out. "You're all so annoying."

They laughed, and the tension in the room somehow gave in and disappeared. Sakura paid particular attention at how Sasuke didn't laugh, but his lips were curved slightly (so slightly) upwards. She smiled, too. They made it seem everything was going to be fine.

"Okay, so this brings us back to my first question," Karin said, as the laughter slowly faded away, "what do we do now?"

Sasuke turned thoughtful for a few seconds and then he turned to Sakura. She blushed. Immediately, everyone's eyes were on her. "Could you…" Sasuke started, "bear the four of us in here?"

Suigetsu beamed. "That is an excellent idea!"

"Wait for Sakura's answer, asshole," Sasuke glared. Then he turned to Sakura again.

"That —that won't be a problem," she stammered. And it sounded like fun. Perhaps all this people could help her know Sasuke better. "Though I'll have to ask for a raise at the hospital—" Because feeding Sasuke was already a challenge, but feeding four shinobi? She was pretty sure that was out of her reach.

Sasuke frowned. "We'll pay for everything. We're just asking for your roof."

"Oh— then it's okay." Something occurred to her. "For how long…?"

"Five months," Suigetsu said, happily. "We'll have a great time, Sakura-chan!"

Sakura grinned. She felt happy, too. Five more months with him. However, she was already worrying about what would happen when those five months ended.

* * *

A/N: Dear school, I hate you! Having me updating once every two months, SHAME ON ME.

Anyways, I'd really appreciate your reviewing this time! (I'm looking at you, suscribers-but-not-reviewers!) Because of the major plot twist. Not that major... But! It's definitely a change, don't you think? And I want to know if you like where this is going :D

Grateful to littlefreakshow for betaing! And being so fast! Jeez, hun, you scare me sometimes. Ahaha.

And of course, THANK YOU to everyone who's reviewed last chapter! :3


	6. Part Six

**A**uthor's **N**otes: Whoa! So many reviews for the last chapter. I think that making you feel guilty about subscribing but not reviewing worked. Hahaha. Anyways, thank you very much :) Hm, about summer holidays… I live in Argentina, so I barely get two weeks of winter holidays. With homework. This sucks so much. I'll get summer holidays in… December. T_T

Ah, just for you to know… This chapter is a little bit shorter, just because the final scene seemed a good point to stop. Not _that_ short, though. Enjoy, please!

* * *

**Tsubasa**  
_By Ailu-Chan_

* * *

"I don't think I can even recognize you anymore."

* * *

**.Part Six.**

After just a week, Sakura found herself laughing out loud in her garden. She had come to like Suigetsu and Juugo, and her relationship with Karin could obviously get better, but it was okay — at least she respected her, and that was all she asked. Suigetsu, Karin and herself were sitting in a triangle, and they were explaining to her a few ninjutsu — in their own hilarious way.

She tried to breathe through her own laughter, "Why are you explaining this to me, again? I- I have read about it, you know," she chuckled again.

"Sasuke's asked us to," Suigetsu sighed and then grinned. "I really hope you're a water type!" He leaned in and approached Sakura's ear, "It's the best ninjutsu of all."

"You know I can still hear you," Karin said, frowning. "It'd be convenient if you're a fire type, though—" She said coldly. Karin seemed so smart when she spoke like that. Sakura liked her for that. "You'd avoid being taught by this dickhead and Sasuke could teach you some cool stuff, not like—"

"Stop right _there_!" Suigetsu yelled. Sakura winced. He was still next to her ear. "What are you trying to say?"

"You mean by dickhead? Or by saying you're an incompetent excuse of a ninja who shames the rest of the water-type shinobi population?"

And Sakura started laughing again, this time rolling her back on the floor, her hands over her stomach. The fights between these two were just too much for her. Karin's vocabulary for swearing at Suigetsu never failed to amuse her and Suigetsu helplessness to respond even more. Poor Suigetsu.

When her laughter died away, their conversation returned to normal. "And what chakra type do you have, Karin-san?" Sakura asked. Even though she knew Karin didn't like her, she always tried to better their relationship by treating her respectfully — mostly because in the end, Sakura discovered she did respect her. As Karin looked at her in order to answer her question, her face was blank, but there was a glint of suspicion, distrust, and maybe disgust.

Sakura couldn't blame her, she realized. To Karin, she was probably a threat. She had managed to "trick" Sasuke, after all.

"Hey! Why do you ask Karin and not _me_?" Suigetsu cried, jealous.

Sakura chuckled. "Yours is pretty obvious, baka."

Suigetsu glared.

"I can manage a few earth type jutsus, but it's not my specialty," Karin then answered.

Sakura's eyes widened in awe. "What's your specialty?"

She only realized she was being pushy once she had finished her question. She really needed to control her mouth. Karin narrowed her eyes and Sakura felt vulnerable, she didn't even have the strength to excuse herself. Suigetsu saved her. "You'll find out soon," he grinned, trying to comfort her. She felt the heat going up her cheeks and nodded, embarrassed.

* * *

Sasuke was carefully cleaning his katana in the kitchen as he watched his subordinates and Sakura laughing and talking animatedly in the garden through the window. He, of course, knew Karin had a crush on him —and that it was probably the only reason why she had joined him, but as long as she were useful, he didn't care— and wondered how well she'd get on with Sakura — especially considering they hadn't had a good start and they were now living in the same house (Sakura's house, by the way).

A few days ago, Karin had shown up to speak with him, and basically told him he was being an utter moron. The conversation was still lingering in his mind.

"_Who's this girl, again? She has managed to trick you from one lie into another, and yet you trust her to the point of telling her about your mission. What the hell is wrong with you?"_

Karin didn't usually insult him — okay, she _never_ said anything negative about him; so he figured she must have been really unnerved by this issue.

He was tired of women. Why couldn't they stick to their usual behavior? Their changing constantly left him unprepared and vulnerable, since he didn't know what to say, how to react. Irksome. Men, at least, were more predictable.

Oh god. That sounded so gay. His finger almost slipped over his katana.

"_You don't know her,_" he had answered, cold as ever. _"I thought she was a threat, too."_ And she had proved him wrong. Well, not really — but, Sakura a _threat_? That was not only unlikely, but impossible. She didn't even have someone to speak to before he met her.

"_Are you trying to tell me I should _give her a chance_? Has she brain-washed you or something? Listen to yourself, Sasuke!_"

So perhaps she was right. He vowed to listen to her words more often — he hadn't chose her for no reason, after all. Then again, she could just be jealous.

"_We're staying and that is that._"

She had screamed in frustration. He winced. Women were annoying, that was a fact.

"_Then what will we do with our chakra signatures? I know _he_'s given us time, but he could ambush us nonetheless! And _you_ said that we shouldn't stay precisely because of this."_

"_Set a barrier." _He shrugged.

Karin had frowned, feeling finally defeated. He was no person to discuss with, definitely. And he was in charge anyway. _"Fine_," she said, storming off.

At the beginning, he had been worried that Karin could be rude to Sakura in her own house, irreverent and bold as she was, but in the end he figured he'd been just overreacting. They behaved just fine, and even if they weren't precisely _friends_, he didn't need them to. He just asked for some peace in order to train and calm himself before the upcoming battle.

Did he just use the word '_overreact_' in one of his thoughts?

Okay, he really needed to stop thinking about these annoying beings. To top it all, he still had a bad feeling about this letter Itachi wrote him. If he didn't want Sasuke to find him, he could have just stayed hidden, instead of communicating with him through a letter. This was a first for Itachi. It just wasn't like him, but what could he do? Continue searching would be useless, if Itachi said he didn't want to be found, then he was sure he wouldn't find him. Staying at Sakura's gave him space and time to train himself and his team. It almost sounded too good.

Sakura laughed again then, a bit louder than before. He found his eyes away from his katana and on _her_, watching her roll on the ground. He thought she was exaggerating, her laughter sounded hollow somehow.

She was trying to get on well with his teammates.

This made him frown. First, he thought she might be planning something, trying so hard to befriend Suigetsu and Karin. Then, however, he discarded that line of thought. What else could she do? It struck him, suddenly, that he had violently shoved three people into her house. When he asked her if they could stay… Did he really think she could have said no? She couldn't even tell the people who spoke badly of her parents to _shut up_, how could she say no to him?

As something akin to guilt — he knew that feeling very well, that was for sure, and this was something Sasuke could not say about many feelings — started to knot up in the pit of his stomach, he focused again in his katana. Guilt was useless in these kinds of situations so he shoved it to the back of his mind. He should take advantage of her weaknesses as regards to him. She was a good medic, and she couldn't say no to him.

He also thought about her training.

She had potential, he had to admit. She was smart and could make decisions quickly. Her mind was that of a kunoichi, it was just her body the only thing that kept her from being one. Someone who she hadn't yet talked about had trained her for two, perhaps three years (she was always bizarre as regards dates) and she had some basic skills, though by then they were deficient.

He didn't have trouble in training her, and even though he did need to train himself, she understood things quickly and worked better if she was left alone. If she needed help and he wasn't available, well, there always was a member of his team who had nothing to do.

Sasuke thought that she would owe him after this, and you never know when you'll need a favor. Of course he wasn't used to go and just train some civilian, but he guessed that, after all, Sakura was offering her house to them without complaining — and hadn't explicitly asked for anything in particular. Sasuke was many things, but he wasn't ungrateful.

Naruto had called him that once, he recalled mildly. But what did the dobe know?

* * *

While preparing lunch the following Tuesday, Sakura was still surprised to see Sasuke had ordered his team to make shifts during the night. Juugo was sleeping in a spare room there was upstairs, which she had previously used as a study room, but now she was fine with just taking her books to the kitchen or the garden. She had accommodated Suigetsu there too. Karin slept with her, and Sasuke used her parents' room.

The thing was, it was past midday and Juugo was still sleeping. She supposed that wasn't a big deal, but she had always had this idea of shinobi waking up before dawn. Then again, he had been awake all night making his shift. He had even picked her up late from the hospital.

Takashi-san had seen him. He would probably ask her later… So she better make up a lie that fit the presence of the four of them there. They could be cousins or relatives of some kind that hadn't showed up before… Yeah, that could work. Not that they were alike physically or anything, but well.

The shopping had been assigned to Suigetsu that week, but Sasuke decided that he didn't trust him to buy the food he was going to eat, so he figured he should go with him and simply watch him. Karin, on the other hand, had offered herself to scout a little the surroundings of the village. Sakura had asked if they thought they'd been followed, but they assured her that wasn't the case, it was just precaution. She decided not to ask again… Karin didn't seem very convinced. She shouldn't worry, she told herself. She couldn't be safer, with four shinobi around her all the time.

Then again, she found herself alone in her house, chopping tomatoes as the rice boiled.

Sakura almost cut her finger accidentally when she suddenly heard the beep of the washing machine, indicating it had finally finished its cycle. She couldn't even remember the last time she had used it. Being herself alone, she usually washed her clothes manually, as the soap it demanded wasn't particularly cheap. Last night she had found a pile of dirty, smelly clothes outside the main bathroom, and she was glad she hadn't forgotten how to use it. No, she was glad she hadn't sold it.

When she turned around and started to walk towards the washing machine (the rice was going to take a while anyways), she found a piece of paper on the kitchen table. The table was a dark wooden brown, and so the bright white of the paper was easy to notice. She didn't think it had been there when she started cooking. Perhaps it was just a ticket from the market, so she approached and as she did so, she realized this was no ticket.

It was Itachi's letter.

She bit her lip. She remembered Sasuke telling her he was off with Suigetsu, and how she hadn't looked at him because she was measuring the rice. Then he had left.

So he left it on purpose. Which meant he wanted her to read it. Her hand moved and grabbed the letter carefully.

_Dear foolish little brother,_

Wait, what?

_Foolish little _brother_,_

Was this a letter from Sasuke's brother? No, Karin had said it was from Itachi. So… it was from both.

Itachi was Sasuke's brother.

She didn't know why she was surprised, after all. She had already figured out by then that they were relatives of some kind. Her mouth went a little dry, as she felt thirsty suddenly. What kind of person would attempt to murder he's own brother? Itachi must have done something awful, then. Although he barely knew him, Sakura knew Sasuke was the merciful type. He had spared her life when she represented a threat, after all.

The shock dissipated as she grew more curious as to what the letter said, so she collected herself and continued reading.

_Dear foolish little brother,_

_It seems like you are still a coward. To have your bunch of mediocre shinobi search for me… You could not do it yourself, could you? You should have realised by now that you will find me when I want you to. As I suddenly feel pity and shame for you, I am letting you know that will not happen anytime soon — I have other business to take care of, and I will not be available until five months from now. I am afraid I do not have time for you. You should continue hiding and training in secret. I do not want to have another shameful battle with you._

Sakura felt like destroying or incinerating the letter. This Itachi was indeed an awful person. She was sure he belonged to Akatsuki, and although she didn't know him, she felt hatred growing at the pit of her stomach.

* * *

When Sasuke arrived with Suigetsu and the groceries, he didn't find the letter on the table, just as he expected. However, he did expect to see Sakura frowning and him and asking questions immediately.

"Tadaima, Sakura-chan!" his teammate exclaimed happily —way too happily for his taste— and she grinned, as she entered the kitchen with an empty clothes nest. Sakura waved happily and left the nest next to the washing machine.

And when she finally glanced at Sasuke, there was no hint of her being upset in her face, although he knew she _was_ upset. The lying capability of civilians never ceased to amaze him. He wondered, once again, if he should have let her know at all.

* * *

"Would you like to do it again, Sakura-san?"

It was one of those days in which her shift switched and she had to go to the hospital just in the afternoon. She usually went in the morning, until about four or five in the afternoon. In order to take better care of the house, she stopped taking those extra hours that kept her there until nine in the evening. Sasuke was paying for the food, after all.

She glared, getting up from the dust. "Oh shut up," she straightened herself and crooked her neck. "I don't think this is going anywhere… You're just too strong."

Juugo would have liked to smile at her, she was always so kind — but he soon found out he couldn't control his muscles as he pleased, and suddenly sheer horror ran through his veins. He forced his mouth open and growled, "Run, Sakura-san!"

She watched horrified how black tattoos started flooding his skin, his calm expression turning into one of bloodlust and cruelty. No one had told her about this. What was happening to Juugo? He looked like he was in pain, and so she, innocent as she was, tried to approach him. "Juugo… are you okay?"

His eyes, unfocused until now, landed on her. She took a step back. "Are you hurt?" She asked again, trying to hide her fear. He growled and sprinted towards her. Sakura's eyes widened and she jumped to the left, barely evading his thrust. He realized she wasn't in the same place anymore just before hitting the apple tree.

He grinned. "Nothing better than fresh flesh in the morning…" a voice, not like Juugo's at all, growled at her.

Sakura wondered what she should do. Screaming was an option, but she was afraid it would just taunt this monster even more. Juugo's own cries and shouts should be able to catch someone's attention inside — everyone was there today. She just hoped this wasn't some sort of crazy test they had set up for her.

"Hey, what the hell is goin-" Suigetsu stopped dead in his track and shouted, "Dammit, Juugo, not again! Sasuke!" And he rushed to Juugo, an arm around his neck, trying to keep him away from Sakura. "Hey, dude, it's me, Suigetsu! Stop it!"

"So you want to play as well," Juugo laughed. "Don't worry, I'll be with you in a moment," he tried to toss him away, and with some effort, he got rid of Suigetsu after a few seconds. He watched as Juugo focused again in Sakura, and before he could react, she was flying towards the house wall, and her back hit it just near the window.

It hurt like hell, but she didn't think she had fractured any of her ribs. Perhaps it'd leave just a bruise. That was good.

What wasn't good was Juugo coming again at her.

When he was about seven feet away from her, Sasuke's back appeared just in front of her, his shoulders tense. She didn't understand anything, but then Sasuke said, "Juugo, _calm down_," and the marks on his skin started to recede, just like magic. His mad expression turned into one of guilt, his eyes looking down.

"I'm so sorry," he said, kneeling in the grass, his teeth clenched. "Did I hurt you, Sakura-san?" He tried not to clench his fists - he didn't want anyone to think he still was angry or something. But he was. Why did he always hurt the people he liked? No one had ever been as kind as Sakura to him.

Sasuke turned to her for a second to check if she was fine, making sure he had deactivated his Sharingan. He narrowed his eyes and looked at Juugo again. "She'll be fine. Go inside and take some rest, Juugo." Perfectly kind words, but they almost sounded like an order.

He considered it for a second, raising his head and staring at the picture. Juugo had decided he liked Sakura a while ago, but then, he noticed how Sakura stared at Sasuke's back in awe. He didn't feel jealous, he felt relieved. In the end, he couldn't even protect himself… from himself, so how could he even think of taking care of someone else? She was making a good choice, and Juugo was very good at letting go.

He then remembered Sasuke had given him an order, and decided to obey, for he knew it was the most reasonable option. "Hai, Sasuke-sama." He said, pained. "I'm sorry, Sakura-san."

"N-no, it's fine…" she managed to say, as she and Sasuke watched him walk slowly into the kitchen.

"Are you okay, Sakura-chan?" Suigetsu kneeled next to her. "Does your chest hurt?"

She chuckled. "A little, yes," said Sakura. "I'm the medic here, Suigetsu, no need to worry," she smiled.

"You've got blood in your mouth," Sasuke spoke, standing before them.

She looked up at him. "Hm?" Running the back of her hand over her mouth, she saw the crimson liquid. "Oh. But I'm fine, really," she assured. She accepted Suigetsu's help to get up, and she stared at both of them. "Is he going to be okay?" She asked. "He seemed a little down…"

"He'll be depressed for a couple of hours," Suigetsu said jokingly. Sakura pouted at him.

"I'm serious… What did just happened, again?"

"I'm sorry, Sakura-chan," Suigetsu tried to grin. "Juugo has this… disease or something."

Sakura widened her eyes. "Do you think I can help him?"

"I don't think so," Sasuke said coldly. "You too go inside, Sakura."

"It's my house, don't order me around, Sasuke," she frowned. "Where's Karin?"

"Scouting," Suigetsu shrugged. Oh, true. Karin liked being away from her house as much as possible.

After a few seconds, she realized they weren't going to tell her anything else. She smiled, she was getting used to this. "I'm hungry, anyone wants some apples?" She chirped happily.

"You sure like apples, Sakura-chan," Suigetsu chuckled.

"They're _red_, Suigetsu. And round, lovely and delicious. How can you not like them?" she laughed, walking through the same door Juugo had moments ago.

As soon as she crossed the door, Suigetsu poked Sasuke, glaring at him. Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "What do you want?"

"You were late, Sasuke."

* * *

On Friday, Sakura didn't wake up. They were all in the kitchen, sitting at the round table, waiting for her to come and make breakfast. Usually, on week days, she woke up early and made breakfast for all the five them. Then, left to the hospital even before Suigetsu could wake up — which wasn't much to say, but still. "Karin, are you sure she's okay?" Suigetsu asked. They did sleep in the same room, after all. Karin had said, waving the issue off, that Sakura was sleeping when she woke.

"I guess," she sighed. "Checking up on her is not one of my priorities." Suigetsu felt the urge to roll his eyes.

"Perhaps she's just tired," offered Juugo.

"Screw her — I'll make breakfast,"

There was a second in which the remaining three of them silently exchanged odd looks, and then Suigetsu exploded, "Hell no! I'm starving, but not _that_ badly," he said, exasperated. He crossed his arms. "I'll wait for Sakura-chan,"

Karin glared at him. "And who said I was going to make breakfast for _you_, dumbass? Get over yourself," she hissed. "Sasuke, are you hungry?" Juugo frowned slightly at her blatantly omitting him, but he said nothing regardless.

He just shook his head. "I'll check up on her," and with the eyes of his team on his back, he climbed up the stairs.

As Sasuke did so, he started searching for her chakra, wondering if she was just faking being asleep, though he knew such theory was plain silly. She knew how to hide her chakra —hell, she really knew how— and most importantly, she liked her job and there was just no reason to stay at home that particular day. He had seen her complain about being tired, but she woke up nevertheless and went to the hospital with perfect timing.

Her chakra was calm, perhaps a little weak, but that was usual when one's sleeping. He softly knocked the door, for he still had some manners, and waited for any kind of response. There was none, so he sighed and decided to come in nonetheless. He found Sakura wide-eyed, staring at the ceiling while lying on her bed.

"What's wrong?" he asked, finally, when he realized she didn't plan to speak first.

After a long moment, her eyes flickered to him and then fixated again on the ceiling. "I have a fever."

He frowned and took a step forward. "Are you okay?"

"I'm having a fever. I am not okay," she answered, coldly. "I _never_ get sick, Sasuke. I bet it was Suigetsu's dirty sneezes from the other day. I probably don't have the same immune system as _you_ do," she complained.

Sasuke smirked. "You don't seem very sick…"

"I took my temperature," and she stopped talking abruptly, as if she prevented herself from saying an obscenity. "I can't go to the hospital today, this sucks!" He raised a questioning eyebrow. "Going to the hospital as a nurse while being sick is just so not ethical, Sasuke," she said as a matter of fact, sitting up and crossing her arms. Her eyes glinted suddenly. "This is perfect! We'll have more time to train."

He knew he was being an utter hypocrite, but he remembered her mother keeping him from training if he got as much as an innocent cough. Despite that he broke that unwritten rule several times as he grew older, Sakura was just a beginner… And she seemed fragile in that sense. "No way." He said, resolute.

"What? Why!" she pouted. "I'm feeling great!" and she threw her arms in the air.

Three hours later…

"My head…" Sakura drawled, her arms around her torso and her head lying on a pillow, "it huuuuuuurts. Can I have another pill, pleaaase?"

Suigetsu chuckled downstairs as he heard her whining. "Sakura-chan, quit being such a baby," he yelled nonchalantly.

"Perhaps we should give her another pill," Juugo suggested. "She's the medic, after all."

"Conflict of interest," Karin shrugged. "Of course she wants another pill, Juugo."

"Oh. Good point."

"Her head hurts because you just won't _shut up_," Sasuke hissed. "So shut up."

The kitchen table was suddenly surrounded by silence.

"Heeeeey, why aren't you talking? I'm booooored," Sakura's weakened voice drawled again.

Suigetsu smirked at Sasuke, who just glared at him. "See? We have nothing to do with this," He whispered to him, his hands raised, claiming his innocence.

"Tsk," Sasuke stood up, annoyed. Suigetsu continued smirking as he went upstairs to check up on her. Sakura had said he himself had probably spread the cold to her, so he could understand why he wouldn't let him see her, but what about Karin? She slept in the same room as Sakura, and Sasuke had just told her tonight she was sleeping on the couch. Suigetsu's smirk slowly turned into a frown on his brows. He understood he didn't want her to get any worse, but it was just a cold, and his measures were plain irrational. Suigetsu's eyes widened.

Sasuke was turning irrational.

Suigetsu didn't know very much about emotions, and he worked hard to keep it that way, but he did know people could turn irrational because of two main reasons: insanity, or love.

Sakura was hot, kind and smart, but Sasuke couldn't possibly be falling in love with her… could he?

* * *

Sasuke was carrying an empty plate down the stairs, after taking lunch to Sakura's room. He put it on the kitchen table. Suigetsu would clean it up later. He intended to go out for a little while, and he could really use more tomatoes and rice. But he found Juugo sitting on the couch in the living room, his piercing stare fixed on him.

"What?" He asked, unnerved.

"I believe Sakura is in love with you."

His eyes widened, but he controlled it before it became too noticeable. However, by the way Juugo's eyes narrowed a little, he had noticed anyways. It had always been a possibility, but from being just a possibility to having someone spit it right on your face there was an abyss in between. He could already feel the headache rising up in his temples.

"It is likely," he just answered. Juugo simply continued staring at him. His eyes narrowed too. "Is that it?"

"No," he shook his head, leaning his back on the couch. "If she _is_ in love with you, I think it's unethical for us to take advantage of her, so I suggest we get out of here as soon as possible."

"Taking advantage of her?" He asked, incredulous. "_She_ was the first to agree with this, what are you talking about?"

"Exactly. She agreed because she is biased, Sasuke."

He didn't missed how the honorific was missing. "Elaborate."

Juugo sighed. "She's biased because she's in love with you, thus she wants you to stay close to her, thus she agreed to bear all of us in here."

So Juugo did have a point, he thought, irritated. "Even if you're right, Juugo," and Juugo's eyes widened a little, why did he sound so pissed? It had been a perfectly civilized conversation. "I am going to kill my _brother_. Do you really think I care about _ethics_? We are shinobi. If we can take advantage of someone in order to accomplish our own purposes, we will. Do you understand?"

"I do, but-"

"Nothing. There is no place for doubts here. The situation is perfect, and our job is to exploit it. Again, do you understand?"

"I do. Though I thought you were a different kind of person, Sasuke. I'm sorry."

The conversation ended there, leaving an annoying sensation all over his body. The only thing that made him feel a little better was the fact they _were_ teaching her, after all.

* * *

A/N: Now this chapter seems shorter and shorter. I'll post it before I get cold feet.

YOU KNOW YOU WANNA REVIEW 3


	7. Part Seven

"Do you even love me by now?"

**

* * *

Tsubasa  
**_By Ailu-Chan

* * *

_"How can you ask that?"

* * *

**.Part Seven.**

"Aw, Sasuke, you're so cute," Sakura joked as he entered her room with her breakfast, which consisted only of an apple and hot coffee. It wasn't a good combination, but being hungry as she was, she would accept almost anything. She decided she would drink the coffee first, so as not to let it get cold.

"Just shut up," he said, annoyed. She chuckled.

She took a sip of the hot cup. "You know, I'm feeling better. It wasn't that bad," she said, looking at him. "Can I be freed now? I'm so _bored_."

"You weren't feeling better yesterday. Stay quiet one more day."

"But-"

"Humor me," he said, sitting next to the window and staring outside.

She watched him for a second, irritated (who did he think he was!). As she saw how his expression relaxed a bit at the sight of the quiet town, she receded and took another sip of her coffee. "Why do you bring me breakfast? I could go downstairs and cook, at least."

His eyes fixed on hers once again, and the slight permanent frown in his brows came back. She regretted having spoken at all once more. "Don't worry about that, Sakura."

Sakura didn't know if he had done it on purpose, but his voice almost made her shiver. She looked away, afraid she would blush. "Aa."

* * *

This was one of the few times that, when at Sakura's, they were together. Normally at least one of them would be scouting, or at the market, or simply not there. This time, however, they were all sitting at the kitchen table having lunch. It really wasn't that much of a lunch — just bought sandwiches that no one else at the town ever bought (Suigetsu wondered why the market owner even asked for them) and water.

Sakura was sleeping. She said she was already feeling better but Sasuke was satisfied to see that she was sleeping more than usual — which meant she wasn't at her best still.

A sound they never heard before surprised them, and they all looked at each other for a few seconds in which they wondered what it might be. Then Karin said, "Sounds like a bell or something…" They looked for a telephone, but there was none. Then, someone knocked at the door and they realized it was actually the door's bell.

"Isn't it weird how we didn't recognize the sound?" Suigetsu said, and that was how they slowly and silently realized why they hadn't. Sakura never had any visitors.

"Sasuke, you should go and get it," Suigetsu said again, biting into his sandwich once again.

Of course, he was expecting this and it wasn't like he was going to let just anyone answer the door after all. He stood up silently, thinking about the excuses he'd have to come up with, because to Sakura's acquaintances, they didn't even exist. He opened the door and saw a tall man staring back at him in surprise.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I thought a friend of mine lived here, but apparently I'm mistaken," he said, an apologetic look on his face. Sasuke would have liked to agree. He was sure he was looking for Sakura, but she had said she had no friends — well, his experience told him civilians tended to communicate with ambiguous words, so he just pretended he understood perfectly.

Before even opening his mouth, he considered the idea of just making that man believe he really was mistaken, that his 'friend' didn't live there — but that was completely irrational. Comfortable for him, yes, but not for Sakura; since she would find out sooner or later, and probably in the worst way possible. _And_ she would have to deal with his lies, which wouldn't be fair at all.

He wondered when he had become so considerate.

The man was about to turn and walk away, so he decided to speak once and for all. "Do you mean Sakura?" He looked up into Sasuke's eyes. "She's here, but she's still sleeping, I'm afraid."

"Oh, so I didn't mistake the house! I'm Takashi, nice to meet you. Are you her brother, or something? You don't really look alike…"

_Brother…?_

He had to put all his power of will in not contorting his calm expression. He couldn't help his shoulders, and they flinched a little. "No, we are not siblings," he said, expecting this man to just vanish in the air with all his problems. However, Takashi was still there, now with a curious frown in his brows. Oh, so he was expecting him to explain who he was. He would have said he was Sakura's friend… But the word 'friend' just wouldn't come out of his mouth —he doesn't have friends anymore— and he said, "She's an acquaintance of mine."

Takashi smiled brightly. "Really? I'm glad."

Sasuke raised a brow. "Glad of what, exactly?"

"Oh, glad that she has a friend," he continued. Oh, how Sasuke would have liked to punch him right then! The f word had been said way too many times that day already. "She's a nice person, despite what all the villagers say… She's never absent at work and when I didn't see her today at the hospital, I felt like visiting her, know if she was okay, you know."

He nodded. "She is fine, just a cold."

"Ah, then I expect to see her at the hospital very soon," Takashi smiled again. He looked down, then up again. "Um… I'm actually a little worried about her,"

Was this conversation never going to end?

"How so? Is something wrong?" Ah, Sasuke knew how to pretend interest.

"Perhaps this'll sound stupid, but—" he tried not to roll his eyes. "She's always lonely, and silent… I know she doesn't get along with many people in this town, and I thought that maybe that was why she never speaks to anyone. Is she really okay?"

Sasuke took a few seconds to double-think his answer. "She is fine," he finally said. "Though I believe it is the civilians who don't get along with her."

Takashi looked at him oddly. "I never thought of that possibility." Sasuke shrugged. "Anyways, I'm really glad she has a friend, and that she doesn't live alone, at least. You know… She really seems unhappy every time I catch a glimpse of her. I… I suggest you don't leave her alone for too much time… what was your name again?"

"I didn't tell you my name," he said simply. Takashi frowned, looking confused; and then Sasuke realized he was being impolite again. He gritted his teeth, and sighed. "Sasuke."

"Sasuke. Nice too meet you."

"Aa."

"You aren't staying here permanently, are you?"

Suddenly, Takashi seemed a lot more intelligent than a few seconds before. Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "No," he answered hesitantly.

"I thought so. I know I might not know you _or _her that much, but from the outside, she doesn't seem like a person to whom being alone is going to do any good," he said, smiling. "Then again, it might be just my imagination." He laughed a little. "Please send her my regards, Sasuke-san."

* * *

"Okay. If you're that much of a chicken — Suigetsu, you're going to train me." He raised a brow at her. "_Now_."

"Err, it's fine by me, but—"

She had just called him a chicken. "This is nonsense. If you want to train and screw up your recovery, then do it."

She grinned.

* * *

When they trained, Sasuke tended to make her feel inferior in one way or another. She was pretty sure this was not his intention but she couldn't help watching him in awe as he sparred with Suigetsu. To her, one word could summarize what she was seeing: elegance.

She realized she'd been staring for a few seconds now, and took a sip of her bottle. By then, she was still feeling a little dizzy from the fever she was sure she had a few hours ago — but she was certain she wouldn't comment on it, as she had barely managed to get Sasuke let her train for a while.

Sakura felt Juugo's steps behind her on the grass, though she didn't even feel like standing up. "Once more?" she asked happily, smiling. She liked training — it was a whole new world of possibilities she hadn't known before and now she had the chance of discovering. She was a little disappointed when Juugo just sat down beside her. She noticed how he purposefully kept some distance from her.

"It's okay, Sakura-san. You should take it easy."

"But I'm fine, really." She tried to control her voice, trying to sound truthful. Juugo smiled but remained silent, so she just sighed and dropped the subject. He was watching Sasuke and Suigetsu's spar, so she decided it was okay for her to stare once again.

Suigetsu had just turned his right shoulder into water to avoid Sasuke's katana. He had thrusted at Suigetsu with such force that she thought he was going to fall to the ground because of the lack of impact to stop him — but instead of falling, he continued his thrust, rotated on his feet and aimed for Suigetsu once again, this time for his other shoulder. A fluid and simple movement, perfectly efficient, but still likely to surprise his opponent.

Sakura thought, then, that every movement he made reflected something about himself. He was somewhere between beautifulness and plain arrogance. She hoped he wasn't showing off on purpose, since every time he took a step she felt mocked and clumsy in comparison.

She continued watching when Suigetsu, knowing that he wouldn't be able to dodge Sasuke's attacks forever, finally turned around and sprinted towards her house's wall.

In a battle in which every movement was carefully premeditated, Sakura could not think of any good reason why Suigetsu would run in that direction. He would have to turn sooner or later, either left or right; giving Sasuke and advantage. To her, Suigetsu didn't seem the type of shinobi who deliberately gave an advantage to their opponents, so she leaned forward — interested on what was going to happen, frowning.

What Suigetsu did —_that_ she did not expect.

Incredibly confidently, he put one foot on the wall, then the other; and when Sakura blinked, Suigetsu was standing on the edge of the roof, his hands rapidly making seals — to which Sasuke, who hadn't been slow in following him and was half his way on the wall, merely grunted and jumped backwards. He glared at Suigetsu and stood in a half-defensive stance, waiting for his attack.

Suigetsu had just walked on a wall. She shook her head, still a little incredulous. How could she be surprised! Shinobi were capable of the impossible, and she was shocked at Suigetsu's little demonstration. _I'm still so naïve_, she thought, looking down. _There's so much to learn_.

"Suiton! Suikodan no jutsu!"

A sharp flow of water emerged from nowhere, in Sasuke's direction. Suigetsu drew a few shurikens out of his kunai holder and threw them along with the water.

Then, Sasuke disappeared from his place. He reappeared in front of the curse of water that was still in mid-air; making his way through with a swift movement of his katana. A second later, he was ready to attack Suigetsu, being merely seven inches away from his neck. His blade was quick to follow, but his opponent also vanished and appeared behind him — a kunai on his neck.

Before the kunai had even touched his skin; a puff of smoke replaced Sasuke, and he quickly disarmed Suigetsu from behind with a knee on his back, making him fall to the ground.

Sakura clapped as she stood up, chuckling. "That was nice!" She congratulated them both. "Hey, Suigetsu, you are cleaning up the mess your fancy water did to my backyard."

"But Sakura-chan!"

"No buts. I'll help you if you want but grass can't stand so much water, you know."

"So you're saying my jutsu was just too much powerful!" He exclaimed, grinning mischievously.

Sakura gave him a look. "Yeah, whatever. Hey, I almost forgot shinobi could walk over walls, by the way. Is it difficult?"

Juugo smiled. "It just takes a little bit of chakra, and the ability to control it, of course. With time and practice, you end up doing it without even having to think about it," he explained to her. "I've been told you're good at chakra control. If so, it shouldn't be too hard for you."

"You think? That's great! Can I try it now?" She glanced at Sasuke, who nodded. She smiled widely. "How should I start?"

"Okay, here, come near the wall," Suigetsu instructed. "So you first need to put one foot here, and canalize chakra there…"

* * *

"Well, well… Kabuto would have _loved_ to have met her," Suigetsu said, letting himself fall on the couch, a little bottle in his hands. He glanced at Sasuke and chuckled when he found the glare he was expecting.

"Please refrain from saying that name in front of me."

"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings,"

"Fuck off, Suigetsu," he hissed. He was just taking some rest in the living-room, and this moron did nothing but to annoy him. "What do you want in the first place?"

"Well, I just thought you'd be interested in knowing Juugo was right — she does have some pretty cool chakra control skills."

Sasuke barely opened his eyes to glare weakly at Suigetsu. "Of course he was right. I told him that."

"Doesn't surprise me," Suigetsu shrugged. "If someone knows, that should be you — you've been living with her, after all."

Sasuke gave him a look. He closed his eyes, and then sat up abruptly. "You asshole, did you leave her alone with Juugo again?"

Suigetsu's eyes widened before he grinned. "Oops." And he was gone. Sasuke lied down on the couch again, sighing. Silence at least.

* * *

"A guy came to visit you," he told her that night, while she was preparing dinner.

She turned away from the stove and stared at him. "What? When? You sure he was looking for me?"

"Yeah. His name was Takashi or something."

"Takashi! When did this happen? Why are you telling me now?"

"This morning. You were asleep and having a fever. He wanted to know if you were okay, that was what he said."

Sakura blushed. "Ah, fine… And what did you tell him?"

"That you were having a fever," he told her, looking at her like she was retarded or something.

Oh, that was so not cool. But what did she expect Sasuke to do? She sighed. "Okay… I'll thank him for paying me a visit later at work," she made a pause. "You could have let him in, you know."

"Don't even think about it."

She chuckled.

* * *

Sasuke frowned in annoyance. He supposed sooner or later he would have to do this, but for the first time, he didn't feel like going out. It was his turn to scout the area and keep Sakura's town safe and, if possible find any clues of Itachi's whereabouts. Truth to be told, he didn't care much about those five months, as they didn't really affect him.

He was ready to kill his brother, and that was it. If he wasn't, he wouldn't have killed Orochimaru just yet in the first place. So if he had the opportunity to settle things, he would do it as soon as possible.

And still, he couldn't help but wonder why. Itachi had always treated him and their little …"issue" with little interest if any. As if he could deal with him anytime in a matter of minutes. Actually, Sasuke remembered how much that arrogance and feeling of superiority of his unnerved him. Did this mean Itachi was taking him seriously? Was he supposed to feel flattered or something?

When he was still at Orochimaru's, perhaps a month or so before he killed him (a half-smile crept up his lips at the idea — he would never regret having freed the Earth from such an aberration), he had overheard him talking with Kabuto about Akatsuki being on the move again.

Maybe his brother really was busy with whatever task that sick organization had given him. However, if that was the case, why would he take the risk of sending him a note? It would have been so much easier to simply disappear. He had told him to continue training, to better himself — perhaps he still believed he was no match for him. He clenched his teeth at the thought.

And now that he had thought of Itachi's task… What if he still had orders to capture Naruto? Should he search for his brother in Konoha?

No way. No way on Earth.

Sasuke decided to stop thinking nonsense right then. His thoughts were definitely not helping him. Below the trees he was jumping through, the path had started to get wider and dustier, which meant there was probably a town or village nearby. Effectively, after a mile, he saw the first buildings: a few houses aligned one next to the other, forming two lines; and a wide dust path in the middle.

There were far more people than houses or buildings, so he deduced it must be something like a market town. After all, they were surrounded by fields that usually had one cottage each on average — those people needed to get their supplies somehow.

It had become almost a routine to him to go to an inn every time he went to a new location — a habit he supposed he had picked up from his gennin missions with Kakashi. He would always ask for water and do nothing for about an hour or so, and then he would get done whatever needed to be done.

You would think this wasn't like the Sasuke you know at all; but habits are habits. He needed to do it, he was used to it, and if he didn't do it, he would feel like something was missing. Of course, he didn't have any trouble in blaming it on Kakashi. Naruto too but mainly Kakashi. That lazy-ass sensei he had been assigned had spoiled him. He supposed the Sandaime also had something to do with it as well — his team was the first one in like sixty years that didn't have a female member. He often watched how disciplined other teams were, how kunoichis easily told shinobi what to do. Of course, Sasuke didn't understand it — and he was sure as hell he would never take orders or submit to a woman. Still, he couldn't deny it. Teams with a girl in them usually worked better. Perhaps a woman in his team would have forced Kakashi out of his contagious laziness. Whatever. The Sandaime was dead anyways.

And that is how Sasuke found himself surrounded by drunken people, drinking water. It was just three in the afternoon, he didn't even see the appeal in alcohol at such an hour.

Which is why he couldn't blame it on alcohol when he sensed Itachi's chakra.

It was just a tiny spark of it, but he had made sure he had memorized that chakra signature. He could recognize it anywhere, anytime, and he was certain that was in fact his brother's chakra. Akatsuki members didn't usually take trouble in hiding their chakras —they were not afraid of being recognized, and Sasuke was pretty sure shinobi were told to run for their lives if they ever came across one of them— so he deduced it had to be a bunshin or something of the like.

Of course, Sasuke was no fool, and he never allowed himself to underestimate a bunshin (especially after his last fight with Naruto two years ago) so he hid his own chakra the second he detected Itachi's; and a second later, he was walking down that crowded main street in his direction.

His Sharingan was on from the moment he first saw that black cloak, and he saw he had been right, it _was_ a bunshin. Itachi's cold, familiar face was staring back at him. They stared at each other for Sasuke's longest thirty seconds — people innocently walking through the twenty-five metres there were between them. Then, Itachi fled. Sasuke was quick to run after him.

He knew this could be an ambush, trap, whatever you could think of. But what else could he do? He wasn't going to watch him run. Moreover, Itachi wasn't the trap kind of guy. Let alone when it came to Sasuke; his bragging about being superior would be ruined if he "cowardly" set up a trap for him.

They had been running for about ten minutes, and Sasuke has considered the possibility of tackling him and immobilizing him — but if the bunshin poofed away, then his only contact with Itachi would be lost. Thus he patiently waited until he halted in a clearing in the middle of nowhere. Once again, they stared at each other, until Sasuke grew tired of such stupidities.

"Do you not talk? What do you want from me?"

"Ah, what a coincidence finding you here," he said calmly. "Do you wish to talk, brother?" he answered quietly, a half smirk playing on his lips.

Sasuke scorned and fisted his hands, trying to calm himself. At least, he was sure that clones' Sharingan was always weakened a little. Even if Itachi were a prodigy (which he certainly was), he was certain that, at least, he wouldn't be able to use that other form of the kekkei-genkai.

In the end, he decided that showing his impulsive nature and anger would only amuse Itachi, and he'd end up frustrating himself. He composed himself and said, "Do you have something to say?"

"No, not really."

They started to fight, and after Itachi barely evaded a blow of fire, Sasuke frowned and asked, "Why have you given me five months?"

Itachi kept his face blank as ever. "I was thinking of some holidays," he answered calmly, throwing a shower of shurikens at him. Sasuke replaced himself with a log and tried to hit him with a Chidori. Of course, Itachi was fast enough to see it coming, and his brother ended up losing his opportunity and wasting chakra.

* * *

By then, they had been fighting for about forty minutes. Sasuke had already figured out he was trying to provoke him, but he didn't really care — he was trying to get as much information on Itachi's real location as he could. Anything could be useful.

That last blow of fire from his brother had caught part of his left arm. The bunshin look tired, at least. They were both wasting their time with useless attacks, he knew it. Still, he was so tired of trying to keep up with him (maybe trying to demonstrate he was at his level) that he needed to lean with his right arm on a tree in order to stand up.

"It's not gonna change anything — this time you're giving me. I could defeat you with my eyes closed right now," Sasuke said, pulling out his katana.

Itachi stood in his place, and smirked this time, looking at him dismissively. "Ah, don't talk like that, little brother. Defeating me is not a matter of physical strength."

"Are you saying I'm not intelligent enough?"

"Well, you _are_ staying at a civilian's house."

* * *

This was so not good.

Sakura tapped her fingers rhythmically on the wooden kitchen table, a hand on her chin, her expression looking a bit worried. Sasuke's shift to scout the area surrounding the village had finished about three hours ago, and he was nowhere to be seen. Even more, Karin had left about two hours ago, saying that she had to do her scouting anyways, no matter where Sasuke was. She even told her that he sometimes disappeared for a couple of days when this kind of things happened.

Still, Sakura knew she was being stupid — worrying over a shinobi? Even more, over Sasuke? That didn't make any sense. The fact that Sasuke was always punctual when it came to his shifts didn't help, however, no matter what Karin said.

But that wasn't quite all.

She had been reading. She had been reading love stories.

When she first met Sasuke, she could have instantly recognized the fact that she was attracted to him. She had even told him so once —and that didn't go as she had expected— and by then, Sakura believed that she had actually been able to say such a thing to him because she felt she had nothing to lose.

Which leads us to the next line of thought — now she _had_ something to lose.

Her "friendship" with Sasuke was all she had. Sure, she was also friends with Suigetsu and Juugo, and she had even come to somewhat like Karin; but Sasuke was the first and when she talked to him, it felt different.

All this was something new to her. Growing attached to someone was something she wasn't used to, and it scared her; because if you had to ask her right then what would she do without Sasuke, she wouldn't know what to say. The scariest thing was that, despite all; she didn't really know him, which made her feel stupid. And it was precisely because of that that she longed so much for every single interaction they had — she _wanted_ to get to know him, his entire character intrigued her, in a good way. A psychologist who she had read a few years before would have called it _fascination_, but she didn't like that word.

Speaking of psychology, most of her love stories defined her feelings as love.

Which was, of course, _wrong_.

First of all, they were _stories_, and she was most definitely not the protagonist of a love story. Secondly — it didn't matter all that stuff she read about love at first sight. She was a civilian and he was shinobi, and again, she barely knew him. She recognized that he had become an important person in her life — but that could be attributed to the fact that he came in that precise moment. And it wasn't like there were many people in her life anyways.

But finally, there was something much more scary than all of this.

Her love stories pictured the characters suffering because of love. And their suffering looked so shattering, so painful, that she wasn't sure if she was ready to go through that. For Kami's sake, they would _kill themselves_ because of love. She wasn't ready for that kind of emotion.

Her breathing stopped as she felt pain struck her chest.

_Now what the hell was that?_

The pain felt weird, and it reminded her of those times in which she used to cry alone up in her bedroom. Her eyes stung with tears, so she swallowed and composed herself. When she stood up to get some water, she heard the door.

She quickly forgot about the water and ran towards the living room, and as she had expected, it was Sasuke. Soon Juugo and Suigetsu also appeared beside her.

"What happened to you?" Sakura approached him worriedly and put a hand on his shoulder.

He glared at her with his bright crimson Sharingan. Her eyes widened as she quickly retrieved her hand and took one step back. "I'll be upstairs. Not hungry." His voice was slightly different, heavier, darker. Sakura bit her lip.

"O-okay…" Then she noticed some blood on his torn haori, and soon she found the cuts and scrapes that had probably originated the stains. "Um, do you want me to take a look at those?"

She figured he had anticipated the question because he didn't even look at her when, climbing up the stairs, he answered, "I'll be fine."

He was visibly upset… It was a strange feeling for her. She had never seen him like this before. He was tired, that much she could tell from the way his eyelids struggled to cover his eyes, and how he was practically dragging himself up the stairs. Sakura didn't like at all seeing him this… _weak_, heaven forbid. Still, somewhere in her head, she was reminded that he was human too.

An awkward silence followed, then. She kept staring at the empty space on the stairs Sasuke left when he disappeared in the first floor; and she had a feeling the others' eyes were actually looking at her. Juugo was compassionate enough to put a soft hand on her right shoulder, and he approached her ear, "Don't worry, Sakura-san. Sasuke has his moments."

His voice pulled her out of her hypnosis and she nodded firmly. "Aa," she said calmly, and then turned around to face him, smiling as she clapped her hands. "Shall we have dinner, then?"

* * *

After Sakura finished washing the dishes, she found no other excuse that kept her from thinking of Sasuke.

It's not like she deliberately tried to keep herself from thinking of him, but seriously? A person she could finally say she was 'close to' was lying on her parents' bed, troubled and upset because of some mysterious reason she had no idea about. How could she not think about that?

She decided not to think much about it — Sasuke certainly didn't need her help for these kind of things. It wasn't like she could actually give him any kind of moral support or anything. Even more, she was sure Sasuke would never do that for her. She climbed up her stairs, resolute to go to her bedroom and sleep off her worries, but when she passed her parents' door and saw blood stains on the handle, she changed her mind.

She stared at the dried blood and bit her lip. This was her opportunity to show to herself that she was a good person, and stop believing what others said about her. Who cared if Sasuke wouldn't do this same thing for her if the situation were reversed? That was precisely what made the difference. Slowly, her hand raised and her knuckles knocked the door.

Pretty much as she had expected, there was no answer. She knocked again. He couldn't be asleep, not just yet. Now that she thought about it, Sasuke didn't sleep much. He was the last one to go to bed, and the first who awoke (apart from herself, of course). Sakura bit her lip again. "Sasuke?" She called, speaking lowly. She didn't want the others to hear her. "Sasuke, it's me. Sakura."

The door opened just a bit, so that she could see his dark eyes staring down at her. It was almost a glare, but she was able to look at him in the eye. "What do you want?"

She made a point not to fidget. "Talk to you," she answered, trying to smile.

"No thanks."

And the door clicked closed, right in her face. Sakura frowned, and considering dropping the issue. But then again, what did she expect? Sasuke was not an easy person to get to. He would probably try to insult her in order to push her away, but she knew better than that. She knocked again. "C'mon, Sasuke." Nothing. Her knuckles hit the door once again. "Please, let me in… No, you know what? You _will_ let me in, because this is my freaking house! So open this stupid door, before I kick all of you out!" She crossed her arms and waited. Still nothing. "There'll be no more tomatoes, and I'll cook nattö every freaking day, I'm serious."

The door opened again. "Don't _ever_ say that again."

He walked into the room, leaving the door open for her. She smirked and looked around, noting how Sasuke had taken care of leaving everything in its place. The room looked just like she had left it for him. He was, apparently, the most tidy of his team. She walked in, shutting the door behind her and sat on the bed. He was staring out the window.

"What do you want?" He asked again.

"What happened to you?" She retorted softly.

He glanced at her, and then looked out again. "I don't need you to comfort me, Sakura."

"I know that. What happened to you?" She half-expected an answer, so when it never came, she wasn't very disappointed. "I think," she started, "that you've found Itachi," he turned around to glare at her, "and things didn't go as you would have liked. Am I wrong?"

"What makes you think that?" He said, frowning.

"There are not many people who can hurt you, Sasuke."

"Is that supposed to be a compliment?"

She smiled, "No, not really."

As the words sunk in, his expression contorted into one of pain and suffering. She felt like crying, to see him like this was almost too much for her. Slowly, Sasuke walked to the bed and sat down beside her. "He's my brother."

"I know." Silence. Ten seconds that felt like years. "Did he torture you, Sasuke?" More silence. She kept herself from biting her lip. "I'm very sorry you have to go through this."

"You don't know what you're talking about," he shook his head, staring at the floor.

She smiled. "You're not a bad person, Sasuke. I know that much." He opened his mouth, then shut it. "When I was alone… I mean, before I met you, I didn't have anyone to talk to — much as I needed someone to listen to me."

"What are you getting at?"

"It really is a pity… You have people surrounding you that are willing to listen and ease your pain, even willing to give their lives for your cause, but you won't speak to them. Do you not trust them?" She didn't expect him to answer, but waited for a while before continuing, "Are you afraid of trusting them too much? I can understand that… But still, you don't have to do everything on your own."

"You don't know anything, Sakura! Just drop it,"

She smiled warmly. "Oh, Sasuke, I can shut up if you want me to. Just, please, don't be so naïve to think you're the only hurting person on Earth."

Her words struck him. Guilt started to climb up his throat. "He murdered my family, Sakura." Yes, saying that always made him feel better. Like his actions were justified.

"I see." She's lost for words. "You are seeking revenge."

"What else can I do?" He asked her. He _sincerely _asked her. For the first time, he looked at her in the eye, and he was really asking her what he should do. Sakura widened her eyes. He was so lost… She almost looked away, but she couldn't do that to him. She held his gaze.

"I don't know actually… Do you think killing him will make you feel better? More… at peace?"

Peace is such a strange word for him. He knew what it meant, but it had been such a long time since he last felt that way; such a long time that he almost didn't remember its whole meaning. And so he answered, looking down at his ninja sandals, "I don't know."

That short conversation between Sakura and himself left him feeling like he didn't know what he was doing anymore, nor where he was going. The questions she wanted to ask (but didn't) were too obvious, and he could ask them himself. What next? What would happen after he had accomplished that single goal?

Despite this, Sasuke decided to go on. The thought of just dropping the mission he had assigned to himself almost eight years ago, the one for which he had worked so hard, was so unreal that it wasn't even an option.

Sakura laid down on the bed, stretching her arms before putting them over her stomach. He raised a brow, and she grinned. "Takashi says hi to you," she comments. "He told me you're scary."

He smirked, and laid down on the bed as well. She chuckled and they both stared at the white ceiling. "Anyways, you should get a grip on your subordinates. Suigetsu almost kicked your ass the other day."

"No way. I won, remember?"

"Yeah, yeah, but he still got pretty close. That water jutsu thing was way more awesome than your super speed."

"Perhaps, but a water jutsu just doesn't work if it doesn't _hit_ you."

"Agh. Whatever. Still, can I learn to do that?"

"Do what?"

"The water jutsu thingy." She said, pouting. He chuckled at the way she said it. "Oh my god you just _laughed!_" She widened her eyes and sat up, staring at him, bewildered.

"No I didn't."

"You did!"

"Did not," he frowned.

"Did too!"

"Okay, I did. At you."

She glared, and he smirked. "Rot in hell." And she lied on her back again.

Silence invaded them, and Sasuke didn't know for how long they had been like that, just staring at the ceiling. He was getting tired, and felt like going to bed (although he knew he wouldn't sleep much), so he finally said, "Sakura, you know—" But when he turned his head to look at her, she was already asleep — her eyes closed and her expression relaxed.

* * *

Sakura slowly opened her eyes, smelling something beautiful, something she could barely relate to some of her memories but which she still didn't know what it was. She was lying on her side, and when her eyes are finally able to focus, she saw Sasuke, sleeping right beside her, his face in front of hers.

At first, she felt like jumping off the bed, scared. She managed to restrain herself and her agitated pulse slowly went back to normal as she sighed. Then, she observed how the permanent frown on his brows disappeared when he slept, and how peaceful and relaxed he looked. She felt her pulse racing again when she blushed, and she raised her hand — reaching to his cheek. Right before she could touch him, his hand swiftly catches her wrist. "I—I'm sorry," she managed to stutter.

Without opening his eyes, he said, "It's too early, even for you, Sakura. Just sleep."

She sighed, but smiled nevertheless; knowing he could sense it. "…Okay." He was still holding her wrist. "You haven't slept, have you?" He let go of her hand, and doubtfully, she approached his cheek again. "Whatever it is, it's gonna be okay, Sasuke."

She touched his cheek with the back of her hand, and he could almost _see_ how she blushed. He suppressed a shiver. "You're so annoying."

* * *

**A/N**: I'm _so_ sorry for making you wait. I hope the length of this chapter has somehow made up for it :( As always, a big THANK YOU goes to littlefreakshow, who beta-ed this chapter. And an even bigger THANK YOU goes to all of you, my dear readers and reviewers. Thanks for your support :) Hope you've liked this.

And! Just so you know, _nattö _is Sasuke's least favorite food. Seriously. Google it.

NOW REVIEW! :D


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